Frozen: Collision
by Keybearer001
Summary: 3 months after the Great Thaw, Arendelle is at peace. Elsa is ruling as queen and Anna is in love with the man of her dreams. When a young blacksmith arrives in Arendelle, Elsa finds herself conflicted. Can a frozen heart heal a wounded soul? Cover done by the amazing ThatPatheticFanficReader. Sequel "Frozen Judgment" uploaded!
1. Elsa's life

**Hello everyone! Welcome to my first Frozen sequel fanfic. I want to thank everyone who supported this idea, ever since I first published it here. Hopefully you will enjoy it.**

**This story was in development for several months, and it was problematic, but I finally think its ready. For anyone who has been waiting for this and read my original outline, note that several changes have been made so do not expect everything to turn out as you might think it will. For those who are new, don't read the original outline if you don't want spoilers.**

* * *

It was quite cold outside, for autumn had begun only a few days ago. Though it had gotten colder earlier in September, it seemed to take some time to actually get to be as cold as it normally did during this time of year, not counting that only 3 months ago, it was even colder, as in colder than it was supposed to be. That's what happens when you're a snow queen that doesn't know how to control your powers and you accidently unleash it.

That could pretty much sum up July when Queen Elsa of Arendelle took the throne on her 21th birthday.

Queen Elsa had not had what could be considered a normal life for a princess growing up as she did. She had everything any princess could want. Loving parents a sister to play with and all the potential to become the queen that you were meant to be when your parents decided that you were ready be given the throne.

The difference was Elsa had been born with powers that she could not control very well at the time.

At a young age Elsa was able to control ice and snow. How no one knew the answer to that. All they knew was that Elsa and Elsa alone had this power.

It had seemed harmless enough at first; Elsa happily used her powers for her own enjoyment, and after the birth of her sister, Anna's too. The two would do everything together from building snowmen to making snow forts, even doing snowball fights in the ball room. It seemed that together, they were an unstoppable force that no one could ever break apart.

Alas things were not meant to be.

One night, at the tender ages of 8 and 5, Elsa and Anna had done the normal routine of going down to the ballroom late at night, were Elsa proceeded to created her famous 'winter wonderland' for the two to play in. they would skate around on the ice, build snowman and just enjoy themselves while they could. However when Anna had began jumping on platforms that Elsa created for her, Elsa found that she could not keep up with her younger sisters speed and slipped on the ice. Without a moment to loose, Elsa hastily tried to save her sister from falling onto the ice, but only succeeded in accidently striking her head with ice.

The result was Anna becoming ice cold and unconscious. Adgar and Idun, the King and Queen had taken Anna and Elsa to see the trolls that resided just outside of Arendelle in order to seek help.

The trolls managed to save Anna by removing any memories of magic from Anna, but the resulting aftermath was the worst blow to the sisters that night.

In order to protect Anna and all others from Elsa while she learned to control her magic, Adgar forced her to stay within her own room and closed the castle from the outside world.

Elsa however would never learn to control her powers, at least in the time that she was apart from her family. They only continued to get stronger.

What made it worse was when she and Anna were 18 and 15 respectively, her parents left for a foreign country to deal with matters that had called them away for two weeks and during the time away, a massive storm hit, causing the ship to sink.

Following this Elsa spent the next three years without anyone to guide her. She and Anna were never around each other out of fear that Elsa would accidently hurt her as she had in the past.

Then the eternal winter happened.

It was the night of her coronation and Elsa had managed to keep her powers in check for pretty much the entire night. The only time she had even needed to take off her gloves was when she needed to hold Arendelle's heirlooms (she had unfortunately coated them in ice, though nobody noticed it)

The party went well enough at first, Elsa simply being the regal queen that she was, dealing with dignitaries congratulating her on her coronation.

However most of it went out the window when Anna had decidedly brought one of the dignitaries, namely prince Hans of the Southern Isles to her proclaiming that they were going to get married.

Elsa needless to say had been completely shocked by this. Not only was Anna 18 years old and therefore did not know anything about love, she had only met him that day.

Elsa had refused her blessing and as a result argued with Anna about the issue and it culminated to Elsa's powers being revealed that night. In fear of being prosecuted (as the troll had warned her that fear would be her enemy) she had run off hoping to live the rest of her days away from those that could bring her harm (and vise versa)

After managing to secure herself on the north mountain, Elsa had created a home for herself, but the next day Anna had arrived begging her to return home. Elsa however refused and tried to force Anna away, accidently freezing her heart in the process.

After forcing Anna out, Elsa was attacked by some guards that were sent to 'stop the winter'. Though she had managed a good fight, she was captured and brought back to Arendelle, presumably to be killed. However, using her powers she was able to escape.

As she wandered through the blizzard however, Hans came to her telling her that Anna was resigned to her fate, heartbroken that Anna was dead, but to her shock Anna had survived and managed to stop Hans from killing her.

In the process however, Anna had frozen solid as a result of the earlier attack by Elsa. Elsa had cried, knowing that her only family was now dead.

Miraculously, however Anna thawed and with it, Elsa finally found out how to control her powers. Love. With love, she undid the damage to Arendelle and brought back summer.

Everything was ok after that. Anna found true love with a man named Kristoff

(whom she had met that day as well) and the two sisters could finally reconcile after many years.

* * *

It was a very typical morning for Elsa. It was still relatively early, for the sun was barely rising over the horizon. It was normal for Elsa to get up before the sun; being queen had made this a habit for her. Oh the joys of being the queen of an entire nation.

It wasn't like that Elsa wasn't grateful for this. Being the queen was who she was meant to be, and she took that in stride every day. With each new day that came, Elsa took confidence in her ability to rule Arendelle kindly and justly, like her father had done before her.

The only thing she was concerned about was the safety and welfare of her own subjects. When it came to herself, she was just concerned that she would mess up and cause problems for Arendelle.

Arendelle was a small town, barely on the outskirts of the coast. It lacked a large army that other nations had. If it ever came to a war, Elsa was not confident that Arendelle would be able to survive on its own.

Arendelle however did have allies both foreign and domestically. Elsa however just hoped that it would never have to come to such horrors.

The worst part was that the citizens might look to Elsa for help on the matter. Being a magical snow queen, Elsa could theoretically use her powers as a weapon as she had done when she was attacked during the eternal winter. But because she wasn't that strong yet (she still had to practice and extend the use of her powers) she wasn't sure that she could do so effectively.

Not only that Elsa absolutely refused to be a weapon. She did not care that in an outburst she could blanket everything under snow. She was not ever going to use her powers in a way that could harm others. She was a queen not a soldier.

She never wanted that to change. No one would be able to tell her otherwise. She was a peaceful person.

Currently Elsa was in her study, reading over several documents that discussed several topics that she would have to go over with their respective nations in meetings later that day. However she wasn't pleased with it at all. It seemed that these foreign kingdoms were a little too demanding in their want for supplies, she would need to be able to compromise an agreement that did not drain as much resources; Arendelle would need some of the excess good, just in case.

Elsa wrote on the document, fleshing out, or altering any of the differences that she felt needed to be done. Once she finished with this document, she would be able to go eat breakfast.

Normally Elsa only had tea when she woke up in the morning, it was all she needed really. It wasn't until sunrise that she would normally go down to have breakfast. She was able to go without food for sometime in the morning, unless she really needed it.

The only downside to breakfast was that Anna, being as she was, was not around for it. Elsa did not normally see her until lunch and that was only because Anna did not get up early. In fact, Anna probably did not even known the definition of the world early. she probably didn't even know that early even existed.

In another life, Elsa would have scolded her sister for being lazy, but she didn't have the heart to. Anna was who she was and Elsa could not see it any other way.

In some cases, Elsa was actually envious of Anna, in regards to her not needing to worry about ruling of Arendelle. Anna wasn't exactly a normal princess though, far from it as far as 'standards' were concerned. Anna however was not one for such things so it didn't really matter.

In either case though, Elsa was the heir and was so far doing an ok job at being queen as far as her family and friends were concerned. However Elsa did not want all this power to corrupt her. She had seen what a lust for power could do to people and she did not want that to be reflected on her during her time as queen.

Elsa smiled as she finally finished the last touches on her final document that morning. Though she had several meetings after breakfast and no doubt would have to deal with even more documents following that, she was just content at the moment.

With a sigh Elsa stared at the window, watching the world go by. It seemed so different that what she had been used to, spending her life in isolation the way she had growing up. Back then she would stay in her room, wishing praying that she would be able to control her powers and have her freedom back. These days however, she was just happy to watch it, knowing that the world outside was no longer her enemy.

The colors of autumn blending in brilliant shades of red and bronze, quite that change from the overlaying shades of green that had been prevalent only several weeks ago. It just seemed so peaceful out there. Elsa wondered how the people of Arendelle were taking the change in weather.

Elsa had not gone into the town very much, given that she was very busy for most of the day. If she wasn't working, she was usually reading or practicing with her ice magic, just to name a few things. Not to mention she spent time with Anna, if said sister wasn't busy causing trouble or going out with her boyfriend Kristoff.

Elsa was glad that Anna was happy with Kristoff; he seemed to make Anna happy and that was what Elsa wanted for her sister; if she wasn't Elsa would not take it lightly, Anna had a hard life as it was considering her own lonely childhood.

Anna however was still young and learning a lot about the game of love. Of course that wasn't saying much, because Elsa had no idea what love was either, but she was not nearly as naïve as Anna was in this day in age. Then again Anna was only 18 but still Elsa knew that love was complicated. On the other hand, considering Anna had been dating Kristoff for some time, it was more than likely that she was ahead of the game.

That being said, Elsa was not interested in a suitor, like at all. She had only been a queen for a short amount of time; there was so much for her to learn and do. Adding the pressure of marriage right now would only be more stress than it's worth right now.

Thankfully she had received no such proposals so far in any dealings she had over the course of the past few months. She knew that it would happen, but hopefully not as quickly as it had for Anna. One monarch was enough for Arendelle right now.

If anything at this rate is was more likely that Anna's children would become Elsa's heirs, once she had some (though not for a few years). Elsa figured that was more than likely, because marriage did not seem to be her type of thing.

Anna would no doubt begin questioning at some point whether or not Elsa liked someone or not, but Elsa would honestly say that was a no. she hadn't met any suitors as of yet, but knew that would come eventually.

As long as Arendelle was well care for, that was all Elsa needed during her time as queen. No one ever said she needed a husband as of yet, though politically that would give Arendelle and advantage because it would gain another kingdom as an ally, but that could be accomplished amicably, not romantically.

With a sigh Elsa turned to her clock. It was barely past sunrise. perhaps it would be best to go down for breakfast before continuing her day. Without a word she stood from her desk and stretched before walking out the door to head to the dining room, where no doubt, so breakfast would be awaiting her.

* * *

Elsa regally walked down the hall, taking in the sights of her own castle. Despite having lived in the said castle her whole life it never ceased to amaze her. The design of the castle was simply very beautiful. Of course it helped that she had put her own flare on it back when she learned to control her powers.

Still she never spent as much time simply looking at the castle, given that most of her days had been spent in her own room. That again had mostly occupied most of Anna's time (though Elsa had heard her). Anna had spent most of her time talking to paintings from what she heard, if not riding her bikes around the halls. It still surprised Elsa that Anna managed to keep that same spark of vivacity, despite the depression that had plagued them both growing up.

She certainly handled it far better than Elsa had, that was for sure.

The wall was decorated with a large amount of paintings, ranging from people to landscapes, the detail brilliant. Elsa may not have cared about art the same as others might, but she could always admire it.

The rest of the castle was just as well decorated. The only thing better was the library where Elsa spent most of her alone time. Elsa enjoyed reading, anything from fiction the history; it always amazed her.

She had learned quite a lot simply from reading. It was the only thing she was thankful for from being isolated. She only wished that she could have done it with Anna.

Then again Anna would have more likely just fallen asleep out of pure boredom. She certainly did enough of that when Elsa tried to teach her things. Anna was more for the thrills of life than Elsa was, if the fact was that Anna had always rushed into things. Elsa was more for enjoying life, not risking her own life for enjoyment.

How Anna had managed not to kill herself doing all the dangerous stunts that she had done continued to elude Elsa. Not counting the fact Anna had indeed died saving her life, but Elsa did not want to think of that again. Simply experiencing it was a nightmare. Reliving it would be far more than Elsa could ever hope to bear.

The only good that had done was bring them together again, and Elsa would not lose her again. If that was to ever happen again, there was no telling what Elsa would do. People thought of her as a monster when her powers were revealed to the world; they had no idea what she was truly capable of. Just blanketing the land in snow was cruel, but she could freeze people to death.

Elsa however was adamant that she would not become the monster that she was afraid she could become. It was more than a hope, it was a promise she had made to herself; and she would not break it so easily. She had lost control once and lost everything. If it happened again, she couldn't be sure as to whether or not it would corrupt her forever.

True she would have her enemies not matter what she did, but she would also had her supporters. That's what family was for right?

That's what mattered to Elsa. Family. Anna her sister. Kai and Gerda her caretakers and surrogates. Kristoff, Anna's boyfriend. Sven, Kristoff's reindeer. Olaf, the lovable snowman. They were Elsa's family and that was all Elsa would ever need in this life.


	2. A stroll in town

**I want to thank those who read, reviewed followed and favorites this story. I know that the first chapter didn't do much for progression, but it won't always be like that.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

Elsa finally made her way down to the dining hall, where sure enough some breakfast was waiting for her. Today was a simple bowl of fruit and some oatmeal. It was one of her favorites, and would mostly likely be just as good as it always was. If Anna was to wake up on time, she would also have this meal today. but the chefs knew Anna all to well. where as Elsa would wake up well before sunrise, Anna would wake up well after it. it was likely that Anna would be down to eat within another hour.

Even though the two sisters spent each day together, they seldom ate breakfast together, largely because of their different sleeping patterns. It was the one thing neither of the two had any direct problems with. Would it be nice if they ate breakfast together? Sure it would, but that's what made the times they did eat breakfast together special.

Elsa sat herself down to eat and slowly began nibbling on her fruit. Strawberries. It was one of her favorite fruits, specifically from the nearby country of France. She had heard that many of Europe's countries were well known for their specific food. even if France wasn't well known for its strawberries, these were pretty darn good.

After finishing a strawberry, Elsa began eating the oatmeal. Sure it didn't taste as well as she might want it to, but she did like eating healthy (even though she and Anna were well known for raiding the kitchen for chocolate every now and then.). but out of the two meals, she definitely preferred the strawberries.

As she continued to eat her food, there was a quit cough from the other end of the room. Elsa looked up, noticing it was Kai.

He was standing there expectantly, like he always did. It was odd this morning though. If he was here that meant he had something important to say.

Elsa cleared her throat and stood up, walking to meet Kai. As she approached him, he bowed. Elsa still didn't understand as to why though. Sure she was queen so it was only proper, but Kai had been around ever since she was a child, there was no need for formalities between family.

"Yes Kai" Elsa asked regally. Kai looked at Elsa before saying "your majesty, I am here to inform you that your meetings this afternoon have been canceled. Apparently, the dignitary you were to meet his afternoon is unable to make it today. it seems that he contracted the autumn cold."

Elsa nodded, knowing that that meeting was to last most of the day today. it was supposed to set up trade routes between Arendelle and several other nearby kingdoms. But if one were to be missing, then the meeting would be unable to take place, if only because it would be unfair to anyone missing.

Elsa frowned. She did not like having to postpone her meetings, but until everyone was available, she would have to reschedule.

Kai then left the room, leaving Elsa to return to her seat and continue eating her breakfast.

Well since her day was now pretty much free, what should she do with it? well she did always enjoy spending time with Anna, so perhaps she should persuade her sister to join her in the town today.

However they would have to be back before dinner because Anna had planned a date with Kristoff that night.

With a sigh Elsa got up from her chair and started the trek back to her study. With so much spare time on her hands she might as well just finish up some of the many documents she had left today. At least until Anna woke up. Then she would worry about spending time with her.

Meanwhile, in another room of the castle, a certain red head princess was trying desperately to get her hair ready to be in a bun. It was well into the morning for the sun was relatively high in the sky. That meant it was time to get up and start the day doing absolutely nothing at all. At least until Elsa was finished with her documents so that they could eat lunch together, and then Anna and Kristoff could go out on their date tonight.

Anna had already gotten ready for the day, actually pretty quickly, considering that normally she was known to loath the mornings. Today though she could, not shake the feeling that something different would happen today. It was something she didn't quite understand.

Finally finished with her hair, Anna exited the room and made her way down the hall. She passed the many paintings that decorated the wall.

As a child, she had considered these paintings to be her only friends. Though she had not been fully aware of the reasons until Elsa had told her following the great thaw as it was now called, she knew now. Elsa had accidently frozen her had while they were playing one night. In order to save her life, Anna's memories were altered, removing any traces of Elsa's magic.

As a result, Anna could not understand why her fun loving sister would suddenly shut her out, leaving her without anyone to play with. As Anna grew, only the many paintings could give her company. They eased her lowliness and gave her someone to talk to, considering that most of the staff was either too busy with their jobs in order to entertain a rambunctious, excitable little girl.

Even worse was that after the deaths of their parents, Elsa was all Anna had left in the world. But alas that was at the time where Elsa spent her time in isolation.

But that was all in the past now. Elsa was in control and no longer afraid. Their relationship had been mended and they would never have to fear being separated ever again in their life.

Anna continued to walk down the halls, going in the direction of Elsa's study, where she might be, if not down at breakfast. Since the study was closer at the moment, Anna decided to check their first.

Anna politely knocked on Elsa's door, but to her surprise, did not hear anything. Anna tried again, but the result was the same. Taking the chance, she opened the door, noticing that the room was indeed empty.

Anna then closed the door. Since Elsa was not here that must mean that she probably left for breakfast. Anna made her way down the hall again, not expecting the see Elsa at the other end of it.

"Elsa!" Anna called running to her older sister, before tackling her in a hug. Elsa 'oomphed' in surprise, before wrapping her arms around her excited younger sister.

laughing, Anna pulled away, looking at Elsa happily. Elsa smiled at her. "good morning Anna" she said "I'm surprised that your up this early."

Anna smiled "well, normally I am Elsa, but when I woke up this morning, I just had a feeling that something was going to be different today, so I was like might as well."

Elsa stared at Anna for a moment surprised. That was exactly the case, considering that her meetings got canceled for today. how in the world that Anna had managed to guess that something was going to be different today…

Anna noticed her sisters blank stare. Tilting her head to the side she asked "Elsa, are you alright? You're kind of fading out on me right now." She said

Anna was surprised to see Elsa, so lost in thought. Usually she was quick with her responses. That was one of Elsa's many talents as the queen. If she wasn't ready for all the meetings she had, that would really come as a surprise to anyone.

Elsa shook her head "as a matter of fact Anna, my meeting was canceled today. it was the only meeting I had today. so after I finish some more documents in my study, perhaps you would like to join me for a walk in the town this afternoon?"

Anna grinned, her smile taking up a large amount of her face. "sure" she squealed, happily hugging her sister again, before taking off for breakfast.

Elsa laughed. It would never cease to amaze her that Anna was always like this. she was always just so happy, no matter the case. If she was ever angry, it was because she had a purpose. Like the time she was deceived by the now disgraced prince of the southern isles. She had punched him straight in the face, knocking him into the fjord.

Elsa hoped that Anna would never have to feel like that ever again. Being used by someone for power or gain was a terrible thing.

With a sigh, Elsa made her way to her study, she needed to get started as soon as possible. The sooner she was finished with the large amounts of documents that she had left, the soon she could go out for a walk with her sister.

later that day, Elsa finished the final document that she had left. Thankfully, it was only nearing lunch hour, so Elsa could still go out into town with plenty of time to spare for Anna, but with the added bonus of being able to eat lunch with her.

It warmed Elsa's heart that for once in her life, she would have the chance to spend the entire day with Anna. Goodness knows that she hadn't really been able to do that since they were children. They still had to make up for all those lost years.

Elsa stood up, then proceeded to walk out the door, where she spotted Anna waiting for her. As soon as Anna saw her, she grabbed Elsa's hand and proceeded to run, dragging the stunned queen by the arm all the way to the entrance of the castle.

Elsa tried to snatch her hand back, but Anna's grip was just too strong. So she had to try the more vocal approach. "Anna! Anna! ANNA!" Elsa screamed, her voice growing with each time she spoke.

Finally, Anna heard her sister, stopping in the middle of the run. She turned to Elsa, a look of false innocence in her eyes "yes?" she asked.

Elsa glared at her sister. that puppy dog trick might have worked if she wasn't so irritated "Anna," Elsa began "I was ready, but please. Do not drag me everywhere. I am perfectly capable of walking myself."

Anna scoffed waving her hand "please. We both know that you're slower than I am." She said. Elsa simply grinned a look of mischief in her eye. "oh really now?"

Anna suddenly noticed the look in Elsa's eye. Fidgeted slightly she tried to keep on a brave face "oh totally like the time-"

Before Anna could finish that sentence, she received a snowball to the face, knocking her down. wiping the snow off her face, Anna was going to yell at her sister, but when she looked up, Elsa was already running across the ice rink that led to the town.

Anna sat there shocked for the moment. Her own sister had beaten her. "Elsa get back here you!" she yelled finally gaining the will to chase her sister.

However if there was one thing that Anna could not do, it was walk on solid ice. Since she lacked Elsa's ice powers she was just as susceptible to its hazards as anyone else. And given the fact that she could skate, it was not hard to figure out what was about to happen.

As soon as Anna stepped on the ice, she slipped falling flat on her face. however her momentum from running caused her to pretty much glide across the ice all the way to Elsa who was waiting patiently for her, trying not to laugh.

Anna came to a stop, but lay still for a moment. Might as well have some fun with this.

Elsa stared at her silent sister, marveling at how well Anna had taken the fall. Oh well at least she was all right….

However Anna wasn't moving. With each passing second she just continued to lie there.

"Anna…" Elsa whispered, her voice thick with worry. Panic began to run through Elsa's body, causing a thin sheet of ice to appear at her feet. Getting down on her knees, Elsa shook Anna's back.

Anna's head popped up, screaming "Gotcha!" Elsa screamed falling backwards. Anna got to her knees snorting with laughter, while Elsa was trying to calm down. after managing to catch her breath, Elsa gave Anna a glare. "Anna! Don't scare me like that!"

Anna just continued to laugh, not having heard a word Elsa had said. She just continued to laugh. After a few moments she calmed down, giving her sister a grin. "you were saying?"

Elsa stood up, before turning and walking away. Anna popped up, and managed to catch up with Elsa fairly easily.

It was normal for the two of them to end up playing games like this whenever they were together. It was something they just did. It was childish yes, but that's just how it happened. despite that, they wouldn't have it any other way.

The two sister made it across the bride into the town of Arendelle. Given that it was mid morning, the town was bustling with life. The townsfolk were simply talking with one another, or doing jobs, while the children were playing with the fallen leaves

In short, things were going rather well for the town and the people seemed happy, despite the face that only three months ago, they were nearly frozen by the eternal winter.

If anything Elsa was deeply surprised by the atmosphere of the town. Not that she should have been surprised, but she had never been in the town before this so how was she to know? It kind of reminded her of Anna. Always happy, no matter what was happening.

With a smile, she and Anna continued down the road, taking in the sights of the town.

As they continued to walk, the children began to notice the two and without a moment to spare, they immediately ran towards the two monarchs.

Elsa's eyes widened. She hadn't been around children, much, but they reminded her of Anna yet again. They were jumping up and down eagerly. "Queen Elsa! Princess Anna!" they were chanting.

"please! Do the magic" they screamed. Elsa smiled. She was a kind person. How could she deny these children a bit of fun?

With a grin, Elsa raised her hand. "don't blink" she said, before forming a ball of ice in her hand and flinging it high into the air. The ball exploded, showering the children in ice and snow.

The children squealed in happiness, running around the newly created snow "yay!" they screamed "thank you Queen Elsa!" they said.

Elsa smiled "your welcome" she said before walking away, Anna in tow.

As they were walking, Anna suddenly gave a squeal and proceeded to run ahead. Elsa chuckled, knowing exactly what Anna was about to do. There was only one thing in the world that could get her as excited as she was. It was something they both had in common.

Elsa managed to catch up with her younger sister, who was now almost drooling at the sight of the chocolate that lay beyond the window.

Elsa had to hold back laughter. Anna could not resist chocolate. However they needed to eat lunch first. So chocolate was going to have to wait for now. "Anna. We will come back later."

Anna turned to look at Elsa giving her a sad look "nooooo! Elsa. Its calling meeeee!" she wailed dramatically. Elsa frowned, before proceeding to grab her sister by the arm and drag her away from the window. "Walk first. Lunch second. Chocolate third. Elsa said sternly, as if she was talking to a child. Oh that's right, Anna WAS a child.

Anna thankfully did not protest in the slightest.

Instead she was very quiet. She was sad, but knew that Elsa would in no way prevent her from getting chocolate. It was her favorite dessert after all. So she was content to wait until after dinner to eat some of the coveted chocolate she enjoyed so much.

The tow continued their walk down the streets of Arendelle. They still needed to find a good place to eat some lunch, before they had to return to the castle. Anna needed to get ready for Kristoff, while Elsa would like to spend some of her time reading, before the end of the day.

Elsa and Anna had yet to decide which restaurant they wanted to go to. There were some of them scattered across town, but some had different types of food. deciding on which one was going to be difficult if the two were unable to find some sort of common ground.

The two girls were not exactly picky eaters. Sure growing up in a castle meant that they received pretty much the best of everything, but that did not mean they were spoiled.

The two continued to look around, not sure as to which restaurant they should go to, until Elsa spotted the border wall of Arendelle. Nearby was a restaurant that looked out on the docks. Meaning that they could have an incredible view of the horizon while waiting for their food to arrive.

"Anna" Elsa said "how about that one?" she asked, pointing to the restaurant. Anna glanced at it before nodding "that looks like a good one" she agreed.

The two walked on, making there way towards the restaurant, when Anna noticed that there was a ship making its way down to the port by the restaurant they were approaching.

"wait Elsa!" Anna said, stopping in place. Elsa turned to her, curious.

" there is a ship approaching, maybe we could give the sailors a nice welcome to Arendelle!"

Elsa looked at the ship, then nodded. "alright" she said.

The two made their way to the docks, where the ship had already anchored and many of the sailors were already disembarking. Elsa glanced at them welcoming all of them, until none were left. However, deciding to wait just in case anymore people would disembark, she and Anna stood there.

A moment later, a young man descended from the ship.


	3. New faces

**Next chapter folks. Thank you for reading this story. I hope you've enjoyed it so far. **

* * *

Elsa stared at the young man leaving the boat. He was quite different from all the others. Unlike them, he was not wearing an outfit that suggested a lifetime on the sea.

He was wearing what appeared to be black leather armor. His left hand was covered in a gauntlet, while his right hand was wearing a fingerless black glove. On his right forearm was a sleeve carrying a small dagger, while he had a sword strapped to his back. Elsa noticed that the sword leaned towards his left shoulder and ended at his right hip. Like herself this man must be left handed.

As for the man himself Elsa was quite surprised by his face. his hair was short and brown. his skin was tan; not so much to notice a large difference, but compared to herself and most of the other inhabitants of Arendelle, he was quite different. His eyes were green, and they were focused, like a wary hunter taking care of his surroundings. His body was well defined, despite the smaller frame he had compared to the sailors

Elsa was not one to judge someone by their physical appearance, but as far was men went he was quite handsome. As he descended from the ship, Elsa felt herself unable to speak. It was rather odd for her, usually she was ready with any sort of response, being the queen she was. She needed to know when to speak. But as the young man approached, her voice was lost.

The young man walked toward her, subtly glancing at her. His eyes appeared to be peering into her very soul. As he neared her, Elsa finally found her voice.

"wel-Welcome to Arendelle" she managed to say. The young man turned to look at her. His eyes lit up and he gave her a smirk. "thanks princess. You wouldn't happen to know were the nearest forge is would you?"

Elsa was irked by the princess comment. He said it so smugly, Elsa was not sure if he was being serious; the king and queen were long since dead. The news of their deaths could not have gone unnoticed. If he was, then why? Surely he must know that she was the queen.

However, she found herself unable to answer his question. As embarrassing as it was, she did not know where the nearest forge was in town. Thankfully, Elsa did not have to answer, for the next moment, Anna said "Its by the town center, you cant miss it."

The young man gave Anna a smile, before saying "Thanks your majesties." He then turned and walked away.

Elsa watched him leave surprised at how much he bothered her. The 'princess' comment, while not exactly rude, was rather inaccurate. Clearly he was not from Arendelle.

Elsa then turned to Anna "shall we go eat, then." Anna was grinning "surrrrreeee." She said with a hint of laughter in her voice, drawing out the word. Elsa frowned. What was Anna playing at? "Anna" she said carefully "what is it?"

Anna giggled "oh nothing, its just that you seemed so…. Lost in thought, staring at that guy."

Elsa glanced at her sister, "what?" she asked surprised

"you had such a dreamy look on your face. it was priceless" Anna said

Elsa gaped at her sister, her eyes going wide "I-I did not!" She retorted. Had she really looked 'Dreamy' as Anna put it? It would have been the first time anyone had ever referred to her as such.

Anna laughed, bending over as her stomach racked with laughter. "you're defending yourself! You think he's kind of cute right?"

Elsa glared at Anna "can we please just get to lunch" gossiping about guys was not on Elsa's to do list today she just wanted to explore the town with Anna and that was it.

Anna grinned. She was not about to let this opportunity go to waste. "ok!" she agreed she was going to get hungry soon anyway, might as well go eat before getting back to teasing Elsa about the new arrival.

Together the two walked back to the main street where the restaurant was waiting for them.

However Elsa found herself glancing towards the town center, hoping to catch a glimpse of the stranger that had arrived in Arendelle. Just who was he? A smile worked its way onto her face. perhaps she did had a dreamy face, but for once, Elsa didn't care. The young man, she wanted to see him again. If he was going to stay a while, perhaps she should find him and get to know him.

Meanwhile, back at the center of the town the young man who Elsa and Anna had met was now circling the town center. According to the redhead with the platinum blond haired woman, there should have been a forge around here. It was what he needed right now, because as a blacksmith, he needed a place to work in order to get some money.

It seemed a lifetime ago that he had even become a blacksmith. It was odd to say the least. His skills had definitely improved though. When he had first started, he could barely make the smallest of items, let alone get them right. These days he was able to make all sorts of items, from armor to weapons.

However as he circled the center, he noticed that Arendelle was by far one of the most pleasant places he had ever come across. It would be difficult to make weapons, because everyone was about as peaceful as they could get. However, perhaps he could repair any sort of broken items instead. While not as fun exactly, it was profitable.

After some time, walking in the center, the young man found himself staring at a sign that read 'Smith shop. No finer blacksmith in town.' The young man scoffed. He may not exactly be the modest of people himself, but even he thought that was a little much. Arendelle was not a warzone. If anything the only people who even carried weapons were the arendellian guard. Even then, they did not do much because Arendelle was peaceful. It was highly unlikely that anyone came here for anything.

Still when you were traveling you take what you can get. The young man entered the shop. To his dismay, it was practically empty. The forge was intact thankfully, but it seemed as if this entire place was devoid of any sort of life. On the nearby desk, there was a sign that said 'closed'. What idiot would leave his shop unattended while keeping the door unlocked? Oh well it really couldn't be helped if that is what came down to it, then so be it. Since apparently, he couldn't get work at this exact moment, he would come back later in the day.

Perhaps he could use the time to explore Arendelle. He was going to stay a while so he might as well get used to the place. If anything, he would rather not get lost whenever he had to leave the shop.

The young man left the shop and walked into the street market. He was surprised by how happy everyone seemed to be. They were going about their day like nothing could ever bring them down.

It was quite the change from what he was used to. He hadn't exactly been around people in a while.

The children were playing, the adults were happily chatting away. As he walked he heard a couple of them talking.

"did you here? The queen and princess are by the docks." One of them told his companion. "it is quite strange." The woman agreed. "Usually she is far too busy in the castle to come in to town."

"Can't be helped though, can it. being the queen has got to be hard work. I can only imagine what Queen Elsa must do every day."

"yes, but she must be doing her best. Her and Princess Anna. Arendelle has not been so happy in a long time."

The man chuckled "yes… I can hardly remember such a time as it is." The couple then walked off.

The young man grinned. It seemed that people spoke highly of the Arendelle monarchs. It seemed that Elsa and Anna, whoever they were, had managed to bring nothing but peace to Arendelle. 'Perhaps I should find them.' He thought to himself. Getting to know them may be useful later on.

However his eyes clouded when he realized that even if he managed to get close to the Queen and Princess, it was far more than likely that they would turn him away. Not because they were rude, but he figured that other than some polite necessities, they would not have the time to chat with a commoner such as himself.

oh well. he still needed to explore more of the town. He had heard of Arendelle but now he needed to find out whether or not the stories of Arendelle were true.

The young man began walking ahead. he might as well get a good view of the city.

back at the restaurant, Anna and Elsa had finally managed to sit to eat. The restaurant, being on a port was well known for its seafood, though it had a variety of other types of food it seemed. That was a plus.

Elsa sat looking at the menu. While she was not exactly a picky eater, she was not the biggest fan of any sort of sea creatures. So if she was going to eat something, it was very well not going to end up being fish.

Anna on the other hand, couldn't decide what to get. She just loved eating a lot of things. So deciding what to eat was going to be the most difficult thing to do right now.

Elsa eventually decided on getting some beef stew, While Anna went all out and ordered multiple orders of trout, sushi and even a whole baked chocolate cake( which was no doubt going to end up becoming the dessert for the both of them.)

The waiter was quite shocked, even if he didn't show it. but given the fact that the queen and princess were eating, he would no doubt have to be at his best, in order to ensure that these two had the best eating experience possible.

Anna didn't seem to notice the waiters discomfort, she just kept on ordering, at least until Elsa said "Anna I think we're done ok?" Anna finally stopped allowing the waiter to right down the orders. "we will have your meal out momentarily" he said.

After the waiter had left, Anna decided to shift the conversation back to the young sailor they had met earlier that day. Even though she knew that Elsa would probably deny anything at the moment, she could not help but just try and tease her about it.

Unlike Anna, Elsa was far more thoughtful about any sort of situation. That was obvious given the fact that she had denied her blessing of the marriage she wanted to have with Hans. so if Elsa did indeed like the young man , she would try to learn more about him before rushing into anything. The problem was the Elsa probably would not get close to him because the next time she was out in town would be anyone's guess

Basically, if the gut left before Elsa returned for another trip, then Anna would not be able to try and get her sister in a relationship. It wasn't any of her business anyway, but still, even Anna knew that Elsa had to be lonely, being in the castle all the time.

Unfortunately what Anna did not know was that Elsa was not into relationships right now. She was more focused on Arendelle at the moment. When she wanted to get married, she would definitely let her council know (unless they sprang the news on her instead).

"so" Ana said "still thinking about that guy?" Anna asked with a grin.

Elsa looked up, an un amused look on her face. she glowered at Anna for a moment before saying "Anna, when did my love life become so important to you? I have not done anything to your relationship with Kristoff since you brought him to the castle and I said I approved of your relationship." She moaned in annoyance.

Anna gasped at her sister, then slumped her shoulders. Elsa did have a point, but Anna was just concerned. But perhaps she should listen to her sister this time. If she was not ready to talk about it then she would just have to respect her elder sisters wishes this time around

Elsa looked down unhappy with her response to Anna. She knew that it wasn't the best thing to say, but was there any other way to move on from the subject.

With a sigh, Elsa turned her gazed toward the fjord, loosing herself in the view. She was indeed thinking about the young man. The problem was that she did not want that to be heard by anyone. If such rumors were known by her people it would probably discredit Elsa as a ruler.

Anna knew as well as Elsa did. Elsa had to eventually give Arendelle a king in order to produce an heir to the throne. However, Elsa was a little weary of anyone who came looking for her throne. By marrying Elsa, said person would control all of Arendelle as soon as the wedding was complete. If Elsa happened to not choose wisely, she would regret that. So for the time being she was content being the only ruling monarch.

The two simply sat in silence after that waiting for the food to arrive. Elsa did nothing to pick up the conversation, while Anna looked at the fjord as well. it truly was a beautiful sight.

A few minutes later the waiter arrived with the food, though he had to make multiple trips for Anna's orders.

It amused Elsa to see that the waiters had trouble with this, but it was worth seeing her sister happy. Even if it was just for the food.

later after finishing their meal, the two monarchs returned to the city streets. It was relatively early in the afternoon, but the streets were as crowded as they ever were. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice the two monarchs as they made their way around.

Elsa was concerned with doing more work now. Sure she had a great time with Anna, but being queen meant having a lot of work to do and because she would no doubt have even ore work to do the next day, she decided she might as well catch up on her work while she had the time. That was good, considering that Anna would not doubt use the time she had in order to get ready for her upcoming date with Kristoff later that night.

Anna was going to have to go into complete overdrive. She wanted to make sure that she looked her best for Kristoff. Not that she never did as it was, but it was best to always look her best on date, even if she did tend to go overboard with it sometimes.

It was a wonder that Anna somehow never managed to be late to any of her dates with Kristoff. She hadn't gone out with him that much (in three months of dating they managed to only go out a few times because of Anna's duty as a princess and Kristoff's job as the Royal ice master and deliverer). That of course never stopped them from trying, it would just be very difficult later on because at winter he would no doubt depart for the mountains more often in order to stock up on ice before spring rolled in again.

Despite that it was a wonder why Elsa never helped him out. She could make ice all year round, were as during the warmer months, Kristoff was pretty much out of a job.

Oh well it could not be helped what so ever, so they would just have to make the best of it while they still could. It wasn't that difficult. During the summer months, Anna and Kristoff were able to spend a lot more time together because he wasn't gone as much.

Anna turned to Elsa "hey Elsa, do you think you can help me get ready for my date." She asked

Elsa smiled at her sister. Helping Anna was going to take a while, given that she would go through a large amount of dresses before finally settling on one to use, but that was dependent on what exactly Anna had planned to do with kristoff tonight (Elsa did not exactly asked because it wasn't any of her business).

So long as Anna didn't act to rashly Elsa was fine with not trying to intrude on her relationship with Kristoff. if only Anna was as polite with Elsa's own love life she would be happy.

"of course I would love to help you Anna, just make sure you get everything you need read, then I will help you pick out what might be best ok?" She asked

Anna squealed clearly excited by the prospect of Elsa helping her out with her date tonight. Sure she needed to inform Elsa on what exactly she and Kristoff were going to be doing that night in order to get better help from Elsa, but that was not going to be hard.

The two monarchs made there way back to the castle. They needed to get back there quickly in order to get started as soon as possible. The sooner Anna was ready for her date, the sooner Elsa could get started with the documents she wanted to do.

The castle was already in sight. All they needed to do was cross the bridge and they would be home free.

Anna and Elsa glanced at each other, "race ya!" they both squealed before taking off. Elsa managed to get ahead. looking back at Anna she cred "see ya." Unfortunately, as she had looked back at Anna she did not see ahead of herself and she collided with something hard.

"oof" she huffed, as she tripped, falling backward. However before she could fall flat onto the ground, she felt arms circle her waist and pull her close. Elsa instinctively wrapped her arms around the person, hugging whoever it was tightly as she regained her sense of balance. Looking up she found herself staring into familiar dark green eyes.


	4. Meeting

**Sorry. This chapter was very difficult to write. Between other obligations and writing certain parts this was very difficult to do. i hope you enjoy.**

* * *

The young man was walking towards the castle of Arendelle. He had spent most of his time in the town simply looking around, taking in anything he could. It wasn't very hard; Arendelle was not as big as it may have been out to be. However he had ye to take a good look at the castle. Predictably it was very large and screamed lavish.

It was more than he had ever had.

He huffed. No doubt the queen was very busy in the castle by now. Though he had seen them at the docks, it had been some time since then, so they had to be at the castle by now right.

It was a shame really. From what he had heard during his travel to Arendelle, the queen was as kind as she was beautiful. If she wasn't busy, would she spend her time among her people, being as happy as could be?

Useless….

The young man walked forward, intend on exploring the courtyard when he heard a loud "see ya!" he turned only to see a blur of teal running toward him. before he could tell the person to stop, it collided into him.

Thankfully as he was wearing armor, the blow did not phase him much, nor was the person heavy enough to cause him to stumble. Unfortunately the same could not be said for the woman (as the person was indeed a woman), stumbled back and tripped on her dress, causing her to fall backward.

The young man reached out and grabbed the woman, pulling her close and holding her tightly. The woman reciprocated the gesture, hugging him tightly and burying her face in her chest. She was breathing heavily, no doubt a result from her running. She just stayed in that position for a few moments, regaining her composure.

The young man blushed. It was the first time he had ever held a woman like this before. It felt so… nice.

He stared down at the woman. She was about his height, take a few inches, with slim build and a body that most girls would probably like to have. However what really stood out was the platinum blond hair that this woman had.

That was odd. Who had such hair?

The woman looked up at him, revealing a young face about his age, with her eyes a starling shade of ice blue. She was very beautiful and she seemed familiar…

Ice… kind of like…. Queen Elsa!

Indeed the young man was hugging the queen of Arendelle after she had accidently run into him.

The queen stared at him a moment. It was dawning on her that she was in a rather compromising position.

Unable to resist the young man gave her a grin "so your majesty, do you always run into guys like this?"

She immediately pushed off of him. she wasn't very strong, so she only managed to push herself out of his embrace rather than push him a few meters back. She stumbled backwards, putting some distance between the two of them.

"why…. You… you…" she seemed flustered for her face had gone red and she was avoiding his gaze. It was rather adorable, if the young man said anything.

The young man just laughed and shook his head. "I'm guessing you don't have much experience with hugs your worship."

Queen Elsa's mouth dropped open, unable to even form a word. It seemed she wasn't used to being addressed as such. The young man stepped forward, "your majesty?"

The Queen seemed to hear that and this time, cleared her throat, regaining her composure. "thank you kind sir" she said brushing past him. the young man turned to leave, but then noticed something on the ground. It was Queen Elsa's tiara. It must have fallen off when she bumped into him. he picked it up, before turning back to Elsa "your majesty!"

Elsa turned back to him, noticing her tiara in his hand. Quickly she walked back to him, but before she could grab it. he placed a hand on her shoulder, stopping her in place.

He lifted the tiara to her head, placing it atop. As he moved his hands away, he moved down her face. his fingers brushed her cheeks. The cold gauntlet moved across her skin.

Elsa's face turned red, and the young man grinned. "if you keep turning red your majesty, people will think your on fire… not that you aren't already…"

The Queens eyes widened and the young man realized he had said the wrong thing, at least to the wrong person.

He gaze turned cold and her mouth turned into a snarl "excuse me!" she shouted.

The young man chuckled. Woman were so easy to get angry. Or thats how it seemed to be for this woman. Forget that fact that she was the Queen, she was still a woman. She probably would throw him in the dungeon for this but he didn't care.

"I believe that that correct term for that your majesty would be 'you're a very remarkable woman' your Majesty? Perhaps you need a refresher course." He said arrogantly.

Elsa opened he mouth to speak, but before she could, the young man beat her too it. "careful what you say your majesty you don't want your subjects to hear you fighting"

As soon as that sentence left his mouth, he received a red handprint, courtesy of the queen, followed by a stinging pain in his cheek.

The young man only stared at the queen, not at all phased by the slap she had given him. "anything else?"

Elsa glared at the young man, wondering why Anna was not trying to help. Glancing behind the young man, she saw Anna rolling on the ground, paralyzed by laughter. No doubt she was laughing at the entire scene.

Why was Anna laughing. In fact who found this funny. Elsa had never felt so insulted (though she was flattered about the remarkable remark. Or she would have been if she hadn't felt so insulted by the earlier remark.)

Elsa glanced at the young man again. "leave before I have my guards throw you out of my castle."

In truth, this was a weak threat. Elsa was not one to threaten others unless it was for the safety of her people and her kingdom, unless it struck as extremely personal. Besides given that this young man was fairly her age, no doubt he wouldn't risk going that far. No one could be that ignorant right?

"we are standing in front of your castle, your majesty" the young man replied. "but I will oblige." Giving her a smirk, he turned and walked back into the town.

* * *

Elsa glanced at the young mans retreating back, before glancing at the hand that she used to slap him. she had never, in all her life had to deal with such a person like that. He was so… rude… back at the boat, he seemed polite enough, but now? He had flirted with her… her! The Queen!

So why was it that looking him, made her want to smile? She had never met such a man before, not even Hans was that arrogant (though it had all been a ruse, so maybe he was).

With a sigh, Elsa turned around. Anna was still laughing at the moment, so she just decided to leave her there. She would be along in her own time. Might as well let her be.

Elsa walked through the courtyard, not at all bothered by her own ice (not that she should be). She was about to enter the door, when she heard a "woahhh!" followed by a loud thud. It seemed Anna had managed to fall down again. Elsa giggled softly, before walking into the door and turned, deciding to wait for Anna there.

A moment later Anna walked into the door, a large grin on her face. "soooo, Elsa" she said "what exactly happened between you and that guy back there?" she asked.

Elsa huffed. Was Anna really going to ask about this right now? It seemed rather obvious what had happened, even a child could have picked up on it. there was no way that Anna could have missed what had happened.

Then again, Anna had probably missed the whole thing, because she had been laughing at some point during the whole exchange…. Though again, Elsa was not in the mood to even try and explain the situation to Anna.

What could she say anyway "he was rude Anna." Sure she could, but Anna would probably blow it out of proportion and smack the guy, or say that he was having a bad day and continue trying to play matchmaker.

Deciding that the truth was best Elsa replied "he tried to flirt with me Anna…" she said uncomfortably.

Anna's eyes widened… before she slapped a hand over her mouth trying to contain her giggling. It failed miserably, because the next moment, she was laughing so hard her cheeks were red.

Needless to say, Elsa was not amused. Anna gets engaged after knowing a man for less than a day, Elsa tries to be a good sister. Elsa gets hit on by a guy she never met, Anna decides to play matchmaker.

Anna finally managed to contain herself, standing up straighter. With a grin on her face she said "soooo Elsa when is the wedding?" she asked

Elsa huffed, rubbing her temples. Anna seriously needed to not do this right now. Glancing once more at her, Elsa gave her a smile "thank you for spending time with me today Anna." She said before walking off.

* * *

Anna stood in the middle of the room, watching Elsa's retreating back, contrary to what Elsa believed, Anna did indeed hear the entire conversation. What she found so hilarious about had been Elsa's reaction to the situation.

Elsa had a lot to learn about love. As Olaf would say "you really don't know anything about love". Well that wasn't necessarily true for Elsa did love her family, but as far as romance went Elsa was clueless.

Anna looked at the clock. She needed to head upstairs in order to get ready for her date tonight. Sure Elsa had promised to help her out later on, but Elsa needed to get some work done first so that she was prepared for tomorrow.

In the meantime it would be best to get started early, in order to avoid the many headaches before Kristoff arrived to pick her up.

* * *

Meanwhile, back outside the castle, the young man returned to the center of town. He needed to check up on the blacksmith shop. If he could find a job there, then his troubles would definitely be over, at least in the sense that he could find a place to sleep and earn some money to gain food to eat, unless he wanted to spend his time out in the wilderness looking for food.

The young man made his way to the smith shop once again and opened the door. this time he was greeted with a shout of surprise.

This time is was from a young maiden. She had shoulder length brown hair, and her eyes were blue. She was wearing a simple black dress. She had a fairly muscular body, no doubt because she herself worked as a blacksmith.

If he had to guess, she was the daughter of who ever worked here.

However his train of thought was interrupted by the girl meekly saying "wh- who are you?" she was shaking and she backed away from him scared.

Geez was every woman scared of him? first the queen gets angry for a little harmless fun, now suddenly everyone thinks he out for something?

The young man shook his head "excuse me." He said politely, "I was told that this place was a smithshop? I was hoping to get a job here."

The girl opened her mouth to speak but before she could a louder angrier voice interrupted her "Kayla!" the voice screamed "who is at the door?"

The girl, now known as Kayla, jumped at the sound of the voice "Daddy, its just a boy… hes looking for a job!" she said

Out of the back came an older man. His hair was black, though it seemed to be greying. He wore a simple shirt and pants. Though he looked old, as his face was heavy with lines he was very tall and very strong, brawnier than anyone the young man had ever scene before.

The young man stared between the old man and his daughter. Clearing his throat he said "I'm just a simple man trying to make his way around the world. is there any way for me to take a job here?"

The old man stared down at the young man "and what are you proposing to do?"

Was this guy for real? This was a smithshop what else could he do here. He glanced at the old man, who was wrapping his arm round Kayla protectively.

Of course. The man was concerned about the welfare of his daughter.

The young man sighed "sir all I want is money to sustain myself for as long as I can here. I have no interest in harming you or your daughter. You have my word"

The older man blinked in surprise. Clearly he had not heard such kind words before, if his angry exterior said anything. While it was clear that nothing terrible had happened to him or his daughter, something must have happened in the past in order for him to be so protective of the girl.

The older man cleared his throat. "very well." he said.

The young man was surprised. This older man was really gullible. Either that or he was a man of honor.

Kayla walked up to the young man and grabbed his hand. Giving him a smile she said, I'll show you around."

Returning the smile, the young man was dragged around the surprisingly large shop. Perhaps he could be very happy working for Kayla and her father.

* * *

Meanwhile, Elsa was back in her study, dealing with several important documents. It was not going to be the highlight of her evening, if anything could be said bout it. Anna had promised that once she had managed to narrow things down for her date, Gerda would come to get her so that they could put the finishing touches on Anna's wardrobe before the date started.

Elsa chuckled to herself. Kristoff was a fine young man and would do so nicely for Anna. Though they hadn't talked much, because of the job Elsa had given him, the two did get along and Elsa had to admit that if Kristoff did ever indeed try to marry Anna, she would not be against it, granted Kristoff asked for her blessing, and treated Anna right. If he didn't, she would not hesitate to freeze him in an iceberg and leave him stranded in the wilderness.

Justice could be so sweet sometimes.

However Elsa was indeed confident that it would never have to come to that. Kristoff made Anna happy and as long as Anna was happy, Elsa was happy.

Just as Elsa finished the final finishing touches on the document that she was working on, there was a few resonating knocks on the door to her study

"your Majesty?" came the soft voice of Gerda "your sister requests your prescence." She said.

Elsa put down her quill and stood up smoothing out her dress. Walking to the door, she opened it, revealing her maid and caretaker "thank you Gerda, I will will see to it myself." she answered regally, before walking down the hall that led to Anna's room.

The door was closed, so Elsa knocked in order to get Anna's attention. There was a muffled "come in" Elsa opened the door, revealing Anna by her mirrors, wearing a green and black dress, similar to her coronation outfit.

Elsa smiled. That was an interesting choice of dress for her date with Kristoff. it was a dress made for dinner, no doubt, but it was loose enough for movement if needed.

Anna turned, glancing at Elsa "so Elsa what do you think?"

She had a nervous look on her face, like she was trying to seek approval for the dress. To Elsa, the nervousness was a bit unneeded. The dress was in no way inappropriate for anything. Then again, this was Anna's first date with Kristoff in a while, and would no doubt be one of the last before Kristoff took off to gather ice in the mountains.

Elsa gave Anna a sympathetic smile "I think it looks wonderful Anna , Kristoff is going to love it." she said, walking towards her younger sister.

Anna gave a squeal before turning back to the mirror, do you think you can help me with my hair?"

"do you want it in a braid or bun?" Elsa asked

"bun," Anna answered.

Elsa gathered Anna's hair into a neatly tight bun, before setting in in place. As soon as she was finished, Elsa stepped back, while Anna admired her handiwork.

Anna squealed looking over herself in the mirror several times over, before turning to Elsa and giving her a hug. "thank you Elsa!" she yelled happily.

Elsa returned the hug "oh anna, you know I'm always ready to help you." She said

Anna giggled, "oh I know, she said with a grin on her face "I'm just… really nervous. Kristoff and I have been going out for about three months now you know? Since it is almost… well him and I aren't going to be able to spend as much time together you know… I just want tonight to be special."

Anna's shoulders slumped, no doubt because of the sadness she would feel when Kristoff would leave. Elsa gave her a smile "don't worry Anna, I know Kristoff will never leave you behind."

Anna nodded, before her eyes widened "oh.. he's almost here! I better get going!"

Anna ran from the room, while Elsa returned to her study.


	5. Secrets and Sisters

**Ok Folks, back after a short vacation . Sorry this took so long to get out. As I said before I am really having trouble characterizing my OC, so ****I watched Avatar. I think I have a better understanding, but I would be really helpful to have an avatar fanfic writer (particularly if your a Zuko fan) as a beta reader so I can better write my OC's character. Otherwise just critique his ****character.**

**Have fun! **

* * *

"Hey Ranger!" the voice of Erhard called to the young man as he was polishing a pitchfork that he needed to repair.

Ranger just laughed and shook his head. In the two weeks he had been with Kayla and her father, he had found out that Erhard was always angry. Beside him, Kayla was giggling slightly.

He and Kayla had grown slightly closer (they hadn't known each other that long) and he was hesitant to say anything else about the subject. Erhard had allowed him to work as a blacksmith (though in the past two weeks all he had done was simple repair jobs, rather than actually make anything for anyone; not that he expected much more than that.) the last thing he wanted to do was make Erhard angry.

Despite his time with them however, he had yet to learn more about the pair. He was aware that the smith shop had been in the family for years, as Kayla had briefed him on that when she had shown him around the shop. He guessed it had something to do with their privacy. That didn't bode very well if they wanted to trust him

Maybe they were just suspicious of people. Ranger certainly hadn't known them for so long; if they were indeed suspicious, and therefore did not trust him, who's to say they wouldn't tell him when they finally did decide to trust him.

It wasn't like he was going to be here long anyway. By the end of the next season, he would make his way down south in order to work in better climate. He wasn't sure if he wanted to stay much longer than that.

He was always on the move. Ever since he was thirteen he had been roaming the world, searching for work.

It had worked out so far.

Regardless of how Erhard and Kayla felt it would just end up being better for everyone. Ranger had always been better alone, even if he managed to find people to work with.

Despite that, he had to admit that Arendelle had a charm to it that no other place he had visited possessed. Whether it was the people or the atmosphere, he wasn't sure about it. All he knew was that he felt very at home in Arendelle.

Yet despite being with Erhard and Kayla, home felt very distant, if that was going to make any sense.

His eyes darkened slightly. He didn't want to hurt them, he really didn't, but it would be best not to grow attached to anyone. It would hurt too much for them.

His thoughts were interrupted as Erhard walked into the back room. His had his usual scowl on his face and he glared at his to coworkers. Uh oh. That wasn't good. This look meant a very annoying repeat customer who would complain about even the slightest problem he had with any work done on an item he requested to have repaired.

Erhard groaned. He slapped his forehead, running a hand through his greying hair. "It seems that Mr. Albinson is requesting to have his pitchfork back. This time without any smudges on it."

Ranger chuckled. Mr. Albinson was a rather grumpy old farmer who had a thing for pitchforks (hence why he was cleaning it) but in all honesty, it was rather stupid that he would constantly whine that his pitchfork was dirty, especially since it was in the dirt all the time.

Even worse the old man would berate the shop for doing a poor job, even though he would constantly return, demanding for it to be cleaned again. If it was that much trouble, then the old man should just go off and do it himself!

Ranger gave the elder man a nod "I'll deal with it sir." He took the pitchfork to the front of the shop, where, sure enough, old man Albinson was standing there a sour look on his face; he looked kind of like a troll who hadn't had a good meal.

"There you are you useless boy!" he snapped "I have my crops to attend to! I can't be wasting my time with the likes of you!"

Ranger growled, angry at the man's words. Unceremoniously he threw the pitchfork at the old man. The pitchfork clattered to the floor. Albinson glared at Ranger before yelling. "How dare you boy!" He began but before he could finish Ranger began yelling at him

"Listen old man! I couldn't care less about your crops! I have work to do myself; other customers are expecting to get their orders in before the day closes. Now if you don't mind I would like to get it done for them. If you have any problems with your pitchfork, clean it yourself!"

With that, Ranger walked back into the back of the shop slamming the door behind him. He could distantly hear Albinson cursing him, but he could care less. It was better for him to worry about any other customers that came along; the ones that weren't in a bad mood.

Ranger returned to the forge, where he found Kayla waiting for him. She was also cleaning an item. Unlike him, she was doing it with a far more graceful touch and seemed to be doing it with a lot more fun in her step.

Well at least one of them could have fun, but then again she didn't have to deal with the customers as much as Erhard did. He had a feeling that had something to do with him being over protective, not that he cared or anything. It really wasn't his place to question a father's demands for their child.

Not that he knew of such things.

Whether or not Kayla realized it, she was indeed a beautiful girl. Sadly it didn't seem like she was aware of it. She was by no means naive, but it seemed that she was oblivious to pretty much anything that could be considered romantic.

Reason number one for being over protective.

Perhaps, Kayla instead used her strength over her looks in order to achieve her goals. She had worked in the shop all of her life so that was indeed a plausible possibility. Naturally she still kept a large amount of her femininity, but she rarely seemed to use it, at least in the way Ranger thought that girls would use it. During his travels, most girls he came across seemed far more giggly than Kayla was. She was shy, probably due to her sheltered upbringing, but she could also be tough and intimidating if pushed into it.

In short, she could be described as a dormant volcano. Meek until pushed into the brink of defense. He would rather not get on her bad side. Much less that of her fathers.

Ranger sighed running a hand down his face. Dealing with annoyances like that of Albinson could really make the day worse. But the smiles on the faces of his employers made it worth it.

Kayla grinned at him. No doubt she had heart the entire exchange between Ranger and Albinson. It made her laugh, knowing the Ranger got easily irritated by even the smallest of problems people had with his work. Ranger worked hard in order to meet the demands of the people who asked him for help. He wasn't exactly vain, but he hated being treated like nothing.

Kayla put down the hammer she had been working on (it was something she liked to use in her spare time.) and walked up to Ranger, a grin on her face. Her eyes sparkled with laughter. "You know Ranger, if you keep talking to customers like that, I just may have to convince my father to kick you out."

Ranger snorted. "Your father would agree with me. Albinson is nothing but a fool; he doesn't deserve help from anyone." According to Erhard, Albinson not at all liked by the people of Arendelle. However no one seemed to be able to give Ranger a decent reason as to why. He just chalked it up to being grumpy.

Kayla giggled "yeah..." she said trailing off, staring into the distance. Ranger noticed her look. "Kayla, whats wrong?"

Kayla sighed "Ranger… I want to know… What's it like? To travel the world; See new places?" she bit her lip, unsure of how to continue her question. It seemed like she had been wanting to ask him this for a while.

Ranger frowned, choosing to look away from the girl. No one had ever asked him that question. Usually most people just treated him like a stranger, or never got to know him long enough to ask that question.

He grimaced "lonely" he said gravely.

It was indeed a very lonely thing to do. Constantly looking out for yourself, doing whatever it took to survive, it was a rough life. He couldn't tell her that it was a fun adventure, because in the end, it really wasn't. The way he traveled, it was a fight for survival.

Kayla bit her lip, unsure of what to do with that information. Frowning she nodded, before turning back to her work. She still had work to do.

Ranger started at her for a moment. He knew that she was disappointed with his answer. He couldn't tell her. Never.

Elsa sat in her study, engrossed in the work that lay before her. One of the downsides of being the Queen meant having to deal with a lot of paperwork, and it was not one of her favorite things to do. She loathed it, particularly when it was trade agreements. It seemed that whenever she got some sort of proposal, the nation that requested it could be somewhat unfair in its demands; at least that's what it felt like at the particular moment.

Sometimes Elsa wondered if such demands were given to her because of her inexperience as a Queen, As if some nations were trying to deliberately trying to deceive her for their own goals. Luckily for her she was quite attentive and was able to not fall into any particular trap. Just because she was young, that didn't mean she was stupid.

The woes of being Queen.

Elsa couldn't really complain though. This was who she was, who she was meant to be. There was no harm in that and there never would be. Besides if Anna was running the Kingdom, well Elsa saw sure that Anna wouldn't be able to last a day. Anna would probably be a kind and fair Queen, but lacked the patience to deal with more of the subtle things that Elsa herself had to deal with. Not to mention, Anna was still childish. If she matured a little, then Elsa would consider having Anna help if she wanted to.

But in the end, it fell to Elsa to deal with Arendelle and she was proud to do so.

Her ramblings were interrupted by a knock on the door to her study. Startled, Elsa dropped the paper she had been working on. Luckily, she didn't, ruin it, so it saved her the trouble of having to redo it (as she so often had to if she accidently dropped the ink bottle on it if Anna came bursting through the door)

However, this knock was softer, and definitely did not sound human. That could only mean that it was one person, or rather snow man

"Elsa!" Said a jolly voice that belonged to Olaf, the little snowman that Elsa had created several months ago.

Elsa giggled to herself. She couldn't be mad at Olaf. His attitude was just to contagious. There was only one reason Olaf would come to the study, and it no doubt had to do with her just as cheerful younger sister.

"Come in" Elsa called. The door opened revealing Olaf with his goofy smile. He strutted in to the study. He trotted up to Elsa's desk "Anna wanted me to come find you, said it was important"

Elsa nodded, standing up. Her work was almost done and her meeting was not for another hour, so she had some time to spare.

Elsa walked to the door, following Olaf to Anna's room. To her surprise the door was slightly ajar and she heard a slight groan of pain from it inside.

Elsa immediately shifted into big sister mode. What had happened? Elsa's pace quickened and she burst into the room. At the sound of the door slamming open. Anna, who was trying to wrap some gauze around her wrist, jumped from the unexpected slam

Elsa immediately ran to her younger sister "Anna what happened?" she cried, horrified to see her sister injured. What could have happed to Anna that she got a wound that required her to wrap it? Not only that why hadn't she called to royal doctor?

Ana winced slightly. "ummm, I cut myself?" she answered meekly. Elsa glared at Anna. She could not believe that she was this irresponsible. Obviously the injury had been an accident, but why on earth would Anna call for her instead of the doctor.

Elsa grabbed Anna's arm, ignoring her wince of pain. Taking the gauze, Elsa quickly continued wrapping it around Anna's wound, before knotting it. Inspecting the dressing, Elsa was satisfied. That should stop the bleeding, but now it was time to find out exactly what had happened.

Elsa gave her sister a concerned look "Anna can you tell me what happened?"

Anna looked away. "well, me and Olaf were playing hide and seek and I was hiding I some bushes. As I was moving around, my hand got caught on a thorn and-."

"Anna!" Elsa interrupted "why were you in the rose bushes? You know that they had thorns in them."

Anna blushed "I'm sorry"

Elsa wrapped her arms around Anna and hugged her. She kissed her forehead. "please don't worry me like that again."

Anna smiled "I won't"

"yay warm hugs!" Olaf screamed as he latched around Elsa's leg. The three just laughed. After a few moments, they broke apart. Elsa cleared her throat. "Anna, I want you to stay here for the rest of the day ok? No more horse play." Her tone was serious and gave no room for argument.

Anna pouted. She so desperately wanted to go out and do more things, but the look that Elsa gave her left her unable to argue. So much for having fun.

Elsa turned to Olaf "good day Olaf" she said with a smile before leaving the room.

Elsa walked back to her study, thinking about the rest of her day. The council meeting that she had would focus more on Arendelle itself, rather than its allies. The council believed that Elsa would inevitably need to have a personal guard

(something that she could agree with). The problem was that she wasn't quite sure who a worthy candidate would be. She would need to at least watch the guard one day in order to make her decision.

In short, it would be a very tedious process and she frankly was not looking forward to it. she wasn't sure exactly, if she should be flattered or annoyed by the prospect of having a guard following her around. On one hand, it would be a great help because it would give her extra protection when she left the castle. The other hand, she would like her privacy, should she ever want to be alone, such as when she wanted to explore Arendelle with Anna.

Elsa sighed. She really needed a break every once in a while, or at least that was how Anna put it, but then again Anna didn't exactly have to deal with the pressures of running a Kingdom.

As Elsa was walking down the hall, Anna was sitting in her room, contemplating her sister. While the two had indeed hung out several weeks ago, Anna couldn't help but feel sad for Elsa. Elsa really worked to hard, and rarely ever had time for anything else (though this was admirable, in the sense that Elsa thought about others before herself)

Anna leaned back in her chair. Surely there must be something she could do to spend more time with Elsa.

Anna gasped. She could spend time with Elsa by attending her council meetings! Wait what? Elsa would probably kick her out of those meetings for even asking her that. Anna loathed the council meetings, but maybe this time she could learn a thing or two. Wouldn't that be something?

Anna giggled. This probably would not end very well, at least as far as Elsa was concerned, but she want to at least try this time.

"Anna?" Olaf asked in his usual jolly voice. Anna glanced at the snowman. "Sorry Olaf I was just thinking." Anna said

"oh!" Olaf said "I like to think to, like the time I-." Olaf trailed off, lost in thought. After a few moments, he grinned and asked "what were we talking about?"

Anna chuckled "Olaf…." She cooed. Olaf always managed to brighten her day with his usual child like manner. It reminded her so much of the time when she and Elsa were kids. True it was a very sad point in her life, following the accident and subsequent years of isolation on Elsa's part, but now she and Elsa were trying to make up for lost times and that's what mattered.

Olaf grinned before trotting out of the room "where are you going Olaf?" Anna screamed after him. Olaf turned to her "to find birds" he said innocently. Anna laughed

Olaf then walked away, leaving Anna with her thoughts. There really wasn't a lot left for her to do, Elsa had pretty much banished her from doing anything so that the wound on her hand could heal.

Anna decided to try and read a book. It was more of an Elsa thing to do, but until Elsa said she could do something again, this would have to do,


	6. Anna Escapes

**OK I'm going to be honest with you. I'm disappointed. With this chapter, really. There are other things, but for now, enjoy. Please Follow Favorite and Review.**

* * *

Down in the barracks, a young man by the name of Elatus was busy cleaning his sword. Among the many soldiers that were under the Queens command, he showed the most promise, at least in terms of skill. Elatus had been trained his whole life in the way of the sword; by his own father, in fact. His father Zodrian, had been quite the guardsman himself in his younger days, but now served as the military advisor on her majesties council

Elsa. Oh, how Elatus loved just thinking her name. He was quite fascinated with the young woman whom he served. She had a charm, such beauty that no other woman he had ever seen possessed. But it wasn't her beauty that fascinated him the most. It was the raw power she possessed. Though he hadn't been present at the reveal, he had quickly heard of how the queen held the power over ice and snow, unlike anyone he had ever seen.

He desired such power for himself. He was a man among men, the most skilled warrior in all of Arendelle. Only he deserved to have all the power.

Elatus grinned. He would prove himself to Queen Elsa, as if there was anyone who could possibly match him. He would make sure of his superiority when the time came.

Queen Elsa would soon find herself in need of a guardian, a skilled swordsman to accompany her wherever she went and protect her from every threat that came her way.

Elatus would be that guard.

* * *

Anna happily hummed through her book, just enjoying herself. She was a little bummed that she was locked in her room though. Ok not really, but she didn't want to make Elsa mad.

It wasn't like Anna wasn't grateful, far from it. Elsa was her older sister, and despite the fact that the two had been isolated from each other for over a decade, the feeling of love they shared for each other never left. Anna would constantly knock on Elsa's door hoping that one day she would respond (but never did) while Elsa would want to open the door for her, but couldn't out of the many fears that plagued her back then.

Anna had to feel sorry for Elsa. Over the many years, Anna had been angry with Elsa, thinking that Elsa hated her and shut her out for no reason whatsoever. However now that Anna knew the whole story about what had happened, she couldn't help but feel sad. Had they not been reckless that day (though they were children, they couldn't possibly have known any better) then maybe things would have been different for the 13 years.

Anna sighed and closed her book. It was very boring otherwise. She was so used to riding her bike down the halls (and crashing into things, if she didn't go flying and land on the floor, now that would cause Elsa to go off the deep end)

Anna sighed. She really needed to get out of here. Elsa would kill her for disobeying her, but Anna had gotten out of bigger jams than this (If Marshmallow was of any indication). Anna quickly climbed out of bed and went to the window, opening it. The crisp cold air breezed through the opening. It honestly felt very good. With a giggle, Anna glanced down, seeing the roof that would inevitably slide down to nothingness. She had done this before, though the castle had been covered in ice and there was a large amount of snow to cushion her fall.

"I was born ready" Anna whispered and without a moment's hesitation, swung her legs out the window and proceeded to slide down the roof.

"WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" she screamed

* * *

Elsa jumped up, hearing a very strange noise that sounded suspiciously like Anna. Glancing at the ceiling, Elsa huffed "Anna… what are you doing up there?"

* * *

Anna thankfully had managed to soften her landing by landing in a barrel of hay that a couple of servants had been pushing towards the stables. After picking out the large amounts of hay that had nestled in her hair, Anna had walked back into town.

If there was one thing Anna loved to do with her free time, it was walk among the townsfolk. Sure she was recognized by the entire kingdom because she WAS the Princess, but that never stopped her before. The children loved her (but not as much as they loved seeing Elsa perform her ice magic) and she just loved being with them.

Anna happily walked down the streets of Arendelle. If she was correct, then Kristoff should be around the outskirts of the city wall, or at least that's where he would be when he was stocking up on ice (though it wasn't cold enough for that yet. He normally collected ice obviously during the winter season).

She hadn't seen Kristoff much in the past three months. Anna was by no means a clingy lover, but she did wish she could see Kristoff more often. Unfortunately, he was scouting the best places for ice during this season, so that when ice did start appearing, he would be able to access it more easily than if he did so without scouting.

Anna was not mad at him for that, nor with Elsa (because she gave him the job), that was just how the world worked when people had to make a living. Anna had work to do sometimes, whenever Elsa asked her to do it. This mostly amounted to attending meetings so that if Elsa became incapacitated, Anna could fill in her place and still understand what was going on. Unfortunately, Anna more than often fell asleep during this timeframe because she found meetings to be all but boring.

Anna sighed heavily. She wished Elsa wasn't always busy, but being the Queen meant having to do it, but Elsa did it gracefully when she wasn't running herself into the ground anyway. Elsa really tried to put so much work into her day, sometimes she would forget the basic human needs such as food or sleep. On one occasion, Anna had found Elsa sleeping n her study after hours of working on several important documents. If Elsa had help from someone, then she wouldn't end up being so stressed that she would end up in those situations.

Anna giggled, Even if Elsa accepted help, she would no doubt be stubborn about it long before she accepted it. That's just how she was. She always thought about others long before herself. Anna had to wonder if she was like that because she was concerned about hurting other with her power even if that wasn't the case anymore, Elsa may have thought about that many times over the years.

Anna walked into the town center, she noticed something. It was a young man about her age. He was carrying some sort of object that Anna couldn't name, but it looked like a hammer of some sort.

As she came closer to him, she realized that it was the same young man that she had seen two weeks ago at the dock. He seemed upset about something, for his face showed annoyance and irritation.

"Hey!" Anna called. The young man turned and he was surprised to see Anna, (wearing a disguise no less, if the cloak concealing her head counted) running towards him. Judging by the look on his face, he had no idea that she was the princess. His face showed confusion and mild irritation. Whether or not it was from her, Anna wasn't sure.

As she approached, he gave her a piercing glare. "can I help you with something?" his voice was weary and gave no room for a warm greeting.

Anna, always the optimistic, simply waved to him as she approached him "hi! Your that guy from before! Elsa's boyfriend!" She screeched just a little too loudly. Many people began looking at her like she was crazy, the young man included.

He gave her a look of shock, before giving a humorless laugh "princess, I think you've got the wrong idea." He said looking away, as if there was something a little more interesting.

Anna wagged her fingers "you can't fool me! I saw how you were with her."

The man looked back at Anna "don't fool yourself." He scoffed.

Before Anna could continue asking question, a young woman suddenly approached them. Anna glanced at her. She was about her height, but had a fairly muscular body. She had a wide grin and was staring at the young man with a strange look in her eye.

"I was wondering what was taking you so long… Ranger, I didn't know you were such a ladies man."

Anna was baffled by the sudden appearance of the woman, and her observation. Her face going red she said "oh no!" she cried waving her hand "its nothing like that! I was just trying to make some simple conversation."

The young woman laughed "listen, sugar queen" the young woman said not aware of Anna's true identity, "once you get to know Ranger here, you'll find out that he is so much to tease; he is a happy guy."

"I'm never happy…" Ranger mumbled.

Kayla laughed "see!" she collapsed in a fit of giggles.

Anna was torn between giving the two a look of confusion or laughing herself. Ranger as he was called was stoic, with a sarcastic side (given the fact he had flirted with Elsa some weeks ago.), while his friend Kayla was witty and happy. The two almost couldn't be any different. How did they even know each other?

Before Anna could voice her confusion, a loud rumble caused her to look at her stomach as her face went red. Ranger glanced at her "Gerda… when was the last time you ate?"

Anna squeaked with displeasure. Gerda? Why was he calling her Gerda? He did realize that she was the princess right? Before she could say anything to either of them, Kayla gave Anna a warm smile "perhaps you'd like to join us for lunch?"

Anna was confused. Was her disguise that good?

However she was hungry so why not join them for lunch. Returning the smile, she nodded, "alright…"

* * *

Meanwhile, Gerda was carrying a bowl of food up to Anna's room. Elsa had asked her to do so, since Anna was expressly forbidden to leave her room. Not that Anna would have listen in most cases, but as there was only one way out of the castle and no guards had seen Anna wandering the hallways, she should still be in her room.

Gerda knocked on the door "Princess Anna?" Gerda asked "your sister asked me to bring food for you." There was no response from the other side. "your highness?" Gerda asked once again. a moment passed and there was no sound from the other end. Perhaps she was napping? Gerda opened the door, only to find that the room was empty and the window was wide open the cool air breezing through.

Gerda shook her head. Princess Anna was known to have a disregard for the rules, why should she have expected any less from her? Gerda places the tray on the table outside Anna's door, before walking to Queen Elsa's study. She was not going to like this at all.

* * *

Meanwhile Kristoff was making his way back to Arendelle. After a few long week of spending his days scouting out locations that would be perfect for harvesting ice this year, he was looking forward to spending a nice vacation with a certain princess for a while.

He felt like he couldn't be any more excited. Despite having been in a relationship for several months now he rarely had time to see her, because of the duties they had to deal with as a part of their lives, not that they were complaining.

All that matter to him was getting back to her safe and sound as always.

He just felt like he couldn't be any more excited if he tried. He loved Anna. She meant everything to him.

* * *

Elsa stomped angrily down to the castle gates, a trail of ice flowing behind her with every step. She couldn't believe how stupid she was, thinking Anna would behave herself. Anna would do anything in order to have fun, even break the rules. Now she was in Arendelle, probably causing chaos for someone as opposing to healing her very deep cut. If Anna did something crazy, then the cut could get even worse!

Elsa was going to drag Anna back to the castle even if she was screaming the entire way back. Anna was grounded this time. No more chocolate for her and no more dates with Kristoff for a year!

Anna shouldn't be too difficult to find. Despite Arendelle's size, Anna had plenty of places she enjoyed visiting. From where she got some of her cloths to her favorite chocolate store. Thankfully most of them were close by to the castle or relatively around each other, so finding her was not going to be difficult. Anna had managed to track her down as well.

Maybe Elsa was indeed being too harsh on her little sister. Anna was still as childish as she always was and had a long way to go before she matured into the woman she should be. But she was 18 and the princess, so she should really get started with that.

As she was searching for her sister herself Elsa was wearing a cloak the covered her head and kept her rather noticeable blond hair out of view. She didn't want to attract unwanted attention, though being a queen kind of prevented that from happening.

The first stop she was going to make was the chocolate store, since that was Anna's favorite place in all of Arendelle, which was going to be the most likely place she would be.

As Elsa was about to enter it however, she noticed it was closed, with a sign that said 'closed for repairs'. Ok scratch that idea off the list.

Elsa huffed, rubbing her hands in annoyance. There weren't many other places that Anna would be and to be honest, she probably wasn't going shopping anytime soon because she had done that not to long ago.

That left the problem of looking over ALL OF ARENDELLE to find a runaway princess. That was not going to be fun at all, not to mention if word got out it would cause panic across the city.

Elsa sighed as she began to wander across the city, unnoticed by the citizens that she was trying so hard to govern. The city seemed so peaceful, and the people seemed happy enough. When she and Ann had traveled through the town on her off day, there were very few negative comments she received or heard. Of course there were going to be a lot of negative comments given the freeze she had caused several months back.

* * *

Elatus walked through the castle halls, towards the training area. He needed to train a little before the next few days. As Elsa needed to find a royal guard to protect her, he needed to make sure he was at his best when that came. It was his destiny. Even at a young age, many of the guards who supervised his training notice his skill and progression as the years passed. He was able to use techniques that many warriors much older than he were struggling to perform. That alone made him confident that he would succeed.

Though Arendelle hadn't seen war in many years, Elatus took his training very seriously. He was quite known by the many ladies he had met to be quite the charmer, at least in his own way. But he didn't care. The only thing he cared about was power. If he gained all the power, he would gain whatever he wanted.

It made him the perfect warrior. Living by strength alone. And when he won the position as Elsa's guard, it would make him the best warrior in all of Arendelle.

There would be no stopping him; no one had the power to stop him, not even Queen Elsa.

Elatus grinned evilly; he was looking forward to this. He would become a greater warrior than that of his father.

* * *

Elsa huffed as she walked around Arendelle. She had been looking for Anna for hours and had yet to find her. While Kai and Gerda ha promised to handle anything for her if Elsa could not find Anna, she had to imagine that they weren't very happy with either of them at this point. They probably thought that the two could potentially be goofing off somewhere (which wasn't outside of the realm of possibility).

Still she had searched high and low for her younger sister and was unable to find her. Every place that she had checked was either unavailable, or hadn't seen Anna at all.

Elsa was steamed to say the least. She hated it whenever she had to shirk her Queenly duties, particularly if it was because of Anna's antics. This one however had to take the cake. Ana missing was the worst possible thing that could happen right now.

Elsa had already lost Anna once. She was not going to do it again.

Elsa couldn't imagine what would happen if Anna died for good. She had experienced it once when she had frozen Anna's heart, but the idea of losing Anna for good at the hands of criminals that roamed the streets of Arendelle. The though alone made Elsa cringe.

Elsa rubbed her eyes. She was tired and she was angry. When Anna was found, Elsa was going to make sure that Anna was going to be supervised for the rest of her life. Forget marriage, Anna was going to under house arrest.

Elsa just decided to search around town one more time. If Anna wasn't found after that she was going to send out the guards.


	7. Couples

**Ok sorry for the long wait. Lives been busy. Please enjoy. **

**Thank you to all who read this story!**

* * *

The city of Arendelle was bustling as usual, despite the continually cooler weather. Kristoff for one didn't really mind, because ice was his life. He was glad for the coming cold, ass it brought him business. He had spent several weeks going up the mountains to find the best routes and places for ice harvesting this year and he was looking forward to just relaxing with a certain red head princess

If someone had asked him 3 months ago that he would help a princess find her sister and save a city from an eternal winter, he would have laughed at them and told said person that he was crazy because that would never happen.

But it did and he was enjoying life right now. Sure, he had seen Anna the other day when they had gone out on their date, but it was very far and between because he had his 'ice master and deliverer' duties to do, while Anna did whatever it was princesses did in their free time.

Not that Kristoff was jealous or anything. To be honest, it would be very difficult for him to do nothing. All day. That's what Ana did for most of her free time (if she wasn't getting in to trouble like she so often did) because she wasn't bogged down like Elsa was.

Either way he was just looking forward to seeing her. Kristoff guided Sven into the city "Awfully excited to see her Kristoff?" he said in Sven's voice. Kristoff grinned, "you know it buddy." He said

* * *

Meanwhile Anna was at the forge waiting for lunch. Erhard, as she had found out was the blacksmith who had owned the shop, while Kayla, his daughter, and Ranger were his employees.

Anna was amazed by the beauty of the shop. There were many tools scattered around as well as many handcrafted objects lying perfectly on the tables that were in the room.

To Anna's disappointment however, there did not appear to be any sort of weapons. This was a blacksmith's forge right? Weren't they supposed to make weapons?

Then again, Arendelle was not a warring nation. Many years ago, Anna's ancestors had fought for land and possessed a massive army in order to attain that goal. However once the fighting died down and Arendelle settle into a peaceful nation, the army was abolished and only the guard of Arendelle remained. They were the only ones who used weapons, let alone needed them. So it was probable that no weapons were even made here.

Anna wasn't terribly disappointed though. She had made a great new friend. Her hosts had been kind enough to give her some lunch (though apparently, Ranger was the only one who knew that she was the princess of Arendelle herself). Kayla seemed like a nice girl and while waiting for lunch, the two girls had chatted, while ranger simply watched in amusement. During the meal, the two had poked fun at him (resulting in many a glares) and told funny stories of each other. Kayla had also mentioned that she wanted to join the guard eventually (not while her father was in the room).

As Anna admired several of the tools that were lay perfectly on the table, Kayla and Ranger walked into the room, wearing wide smiles. "Gerda!" Kayla cried with enthusiasm "You've been staring at all those tools ever since you walked in here after lunch"

Anna turned to see her new friends walking toward her. Kayla bounced with every step

"It's a far cry from the tools in the castle, isn't it princess?" Ranger said, his voice filled with a teasing grin.

Anna blushed. Truth be told, she had never been in the castle forge in all her time spent roaming in the castle. Se had spent most of her time among paintings, not weapons.

"Its certainly… different" she agreed lamely. She really couldn't argue with them, since it was her first time in such a room. "To be honest, this is all completely new to me."

Kayla chuckled "its honestly not that hard to understand"

Anna cocked her head. If there was going to be a lecture, she would just let her head fall back and plunge into a peaceful oblivious sleep. She hated lectures, no ifs ands or buts about it. As a child she had been known to skip her lessons because they were "so boring" as Anna put it. but she couldn't tell that to her hosts. Instead she waved her hands, and said "oh no, its quite alright." She breathed out quickly "I've got to get back anyway." she began walking towards the door, when all of a sudden the door burst open

In walked Kristoff, He had just arrived in town and was really anxious to see Anna (unaware that she was in fact, in the forge he was in. he walked up to the desk "hello?" he called out.

Erhard, who was at the front desk turned to the man "what can I do for you?" he asked gruffly

Kristoff frowned "My sled is outside. It suffered some breaks while I was on my way down.

Erhard thought for a moment. A sled suffering some damage was not unheard of while one was travelling the mountains. Thee were a lot of obstacles that could easily have caused it, like rocks and large branches, if one wasn't careful while riding the sled.

"How much damage has your sled taken on your trip?" Erhard asked

Kristoff rubbed his arm, feeling embarrassed. He had done some reckless driving while on the way down. he had felt a little to anxious to see Anna and wanted to surprise she early for the day. In the process, his sled kind of hit a large amount of small rocks he had failed to see and nearly took off the whole bottom.

In short, it would take some hours to repair it. Good thing Elsa and Anna weren't there. He was certain that they would not have appreciated the moment.

He sighed. "it will take some time to repair it." he told Erhard. "Probably overnight." He surmised to the old blacksmith.

Erhard scowled "that will cost some extra then." He told Kristoff

Krstoff frowned. He didn't have so much in the way of coin with him. He usually carried enough for supplies and emergencies. But since his sled had suffered some extensive damage, he wasn't sure if he was going to be able to get it fixed without grabbing some extra coins.

Before Kristoff could even consider telling Erhard about his situation, Anna suddenly burst in from the back room and tackled Kristoff in a tight hug. The said blond groaned from the sudden tackle, nearly staggering backward.

Anna had not expected Kristoff to up and suddenly show up. She knew from the last time they had seen each other that he would definitely return from his job any day now, but to have him suddenly show up here…. That was a definite bonus from him being at the castle when she got back there.

Anna squeezed Kristoff tightly, burying her head into the base of his neck. "Kristoff!" she moaned happily.

Kristoff , after recovering from his initial shock, smiled and hugged Anna back "Anna?" he asked "what are you doing in this forge?"

Anna quickly pulled out of his embrace, giving him a wide smile "I was just walking around town after escaping from the castle and I-"

Kristoff's eyes widened "wait wait wait!" he deterred her from continuing, "'escaped'" he echoed, "what do you mean"

Anna squeaked and blushed as her mistake dawned on her. She really needed to learn when not to say something.

Embarrassed. She rolled back the sleeve on her arm and showed him the gauzed that covered her forearm. Kristoff gasped and grabbed it, causing Anna to wince in pain.

"Anna! What happened?"

Anna pulled her arm back, rubbing the area where Kristoff had accidently managed to make sore.

"It wasn't anything Kristoff, I just cut myself a little no big deal." She told him, trying to brush off the situation like it had been nothing at all.

Kristoff however, wasn't going to be distracted from the matter. "Anna, it's a gauzed cut. You could have seriously injured yourself. So do you really think saying 'its no big deal' is really going to be taken seriously?" he asked incredulously

Anna's eyes flashed with anger "are you saying you don't take me seriously Kristoff Bjorgman!" Anna yelled, anger slicing through her tone.

Erhard, who was watching them (and they forgot was even in the room.) buried his face in his hands "and this is why I don't want her dating…." He mumbled

"No!" Kristoff argued "not at all! Your just a reckless person sometimes Anna, I don't want you getting hurt."

Bad move….

Anna gasped. She was stuck in between being flattered and insulted. Gritting her teeth. She pushed Kristoff out of her way, and stomped out the door.

Kristoff stood there dumbfounded, before quickly turning and running out the door, screaming Anna's name.

* * *

Sven watched as his best friend and his girlfriend hastiliy walked out of whatever building that Kristoff had been intent on walking into. That was odd. The two had never argued before, so what had changed? Sven unfortunately couldn't leave as he was tied to the sled so he just resigned to sitting there.

Elsa moaned trudging along through the streets of Arendelle. She still had yet to find anna and she was growing impatient. She had missed a meeting and lost precious time for her work all because Anna decided to do what she did best. Elsa knew she had to cut her sister some slack for being childish, but this was getting way to far out of hand for Elsa to tolerate it for very much longer.

Anna was absent from every chocolate store in the town and Elsa hadn't found her in the streets either. It was getting late (though the sun hadn't yet set) but Anna was going to be in huge trouble when she decided to return to the castle (or when Elsa managed to locate her)

Elsa groaned unhappily; she had no idea where to even start to find Anna. How hard could it be to find a missing princess for crying out loud. Anna had found her in the mountains, it couldn't be that difficult!

Elsa decided to try taking one more loop around the city to search for Anna. If not she would return to the castle and send out the guards to go and find her.

* * *

Anna stomped away from Kristoff angry. He called her reckless and boy was she mad. She felt insulted and couldn't believe the words that came out of his mouth. Her? Reckless?

Ok maybe he had a point, but she didn't go running around yelling to the world that he smelled like a reindeer! You just don't go it and say things like that!

Anna huffed reaching for the hood of her cloak, when she suddenly realized… she had left her cloak t the forge!

She slapped her forehead. She would have to go back to the forge and grab it (running back to Kristoff in the process.) groaning, Anna turned and walked back to Erhard's smith shop.

None to her surprise however, she saw Kristoff running towards her a look of worry on his face

Anna however would not talk to him. As he came t a stop in front of her, Anna just brushed past him and kept on her current course.

Kristoff sighed. There was no use talking to Anna when she was this upset he would have to try again later. He turned and walked towards the castle to find Elsa.

* * *

Anna walked back into the forge, passing a happy Sven. Erhard had a very displeased look on his face. With his customer gone after Anna, he hadn't been paid up front to do his job.

Anna dug into her pocket a pulled out a few coins, placing them on the desk. "I'm sorry for causing trouble mister Erhard, I'll pay for the damage."

Erhard nodded taking the coins from Anna. He gave her a rare smile "child, do not fret." He told her.

Anna blushed, knowing that he had seen the small spat between her and Kristoff. She returned his smile and thanked him. As she turned to leave Kayla came running out from the back.

"Princess?" she asked.

Anna sighed she kknew that she would have to tell them sooner or later, so she might as well tell Kayla now. "Yes Kayla I am the princess." She told her.

Kala's eyes widened, before she smiled "it was an honor, Anna." Kayla told the other girl. Anna gave Kayla a smile and wrapped her in a tight hug. Kayla was shocked by the sudden gesture, but returned it.

The two had grown quite close during the short few hours that they had spent talking to each other. Of course they couldn't be called best friends or anything like that because they had only met you know, that day (remember how that turned out?) but Anna wouldn't be surprised if she would make a return appearance for her new friends.

Anna let go of the other girl, then asked "I better get going," she told Kayla. Kayla gave her a grin. "Ok but don't forget your cloak ok?" she told Anna with a light teasing grin.

Anna laughed, "where is my cloak by the way?"

Kayla pointed to the back room. Anna quickly walked into he room, before gasping at the sight she saw.

Ranger was doing some sort of workout with a sword, like he was practicing his technique. And he was shirtless. Anna felt her eyes roam across the young mans body. He was quite muscular, despite his lean frame. But to her surprise as he moved, she noticed something else There were several healed scars scattered across his arms and upper body.

Anna felt herself blush as she continued to admire her friend. She mentally slapped herself for doing so, because she was seeing Kristoff. It wouldn't look to good for her if he saw what she was doing at the moment.

Before long, he turned, suddenly noticing the princess. He gave her a sly grin "you knoe princess, its not polite to stare at someone, especially when he's half naked."

Anna's face exploded with heat at the innuendo of his words. She had no idea how to respond to that. Her mouth opened and closed several times, but she was bereft of any words.

The young man just laughed before walking to the nearby table, and grabbed a towel that was draped across it. He wiped his face, before turning back to the princess "is there something you need Anna?"

Anna thankfully managed to find her voice "I –I just needed my cloak." She said slowly

Ranger grabbed the cloak, and passed it to Anna. Anna quickly grabbed it, trying in vain not to admire the mans muscularity.

"Thank you" she said, before turning and all but running out the door.

She walked back into the streets "oh my…" she whispered to herself

* * *

Elsa groaned as she final turned around and decided "I'm done" she moaned to herself. At the rate she was going Anna was probably back at the castle, eating all the chocolate she could get her hands on. It certainly wouldn't have surprised Elsa right now.

Anna was gong to get herself in trouble each and every day there was no way that was ever going to change. Elsa just didn't want Anna to get injured while doing so.

As she turned to walk down the path that led to the castle, she suddenly noticed a familiar man walking in her direction, but his eyes were downcast and he hadn't noticed the queen.

It was Kristoff, looking so down. Maybe he had also been looking for Anna? And couldn't find her? That was worth a shot to ask him.

"Kristoff!" Elsa yelled, causing the ice harvester to jump and look around wildly for the source of the voice that had so eagerly called out his name. Elsa called out again, allowing him to find her. He quickly walked toward her, half expecting her to be angry with him, but to his surprise., she was looking at him with a sense of urgency.

"Your majesty? What's wrong!" he cried in alarm

Elsa groaned and sighed "Anna decided to try a daring escape again, and I've been unable to find her."

Kristoff's eyes widened "ohh.." he rubbed his neck "Anna and I"

Elsa's eyes widened "you've seen her?" Elsa screamed angrily, making Kristoff jump at her vehement tone.

If there was one event that Kristoff would want to start , it was an angry Elsa. He could feel the temperature decline as Elsa's eyes bored into his very soul.

He gulped "she's by the town forge with Sven!" he cried out scared for his life. His eyes widened when he suddenly realized "Sven!" he cried and he turned around and all but sped back to the forge.

Elsa slapped her forehead.

* * *

Anna trudged back to the castle, trying to calm her nerves. She knew that the young blacksmith would be a perfect match for Elsa, but he was just so…

Anna blushed. If there was one thing she needed to do, it was get Ranger shirtless in front of Elsa. If she knew her sister, then ice would be coating the floor from what Elsa would feel seeing such a man.

She giggled. Wouldn't that be the day?

As Anna was walking, a blur suddenly ran past her speeding straight back the way that she had just walked down.

Anna turned and saw Kristoff running towards Sven, who seemed very eager to reunite with his master after being left like that. But the fight had caused them both to forget things.

Anna did not want to talk to her boyfriend at the moment, because she was still mad at him. They would talk later, when both of them had cooled down. Speaking of cooled down…

"Anna!" cried the angry voice of a certain Snow Queen that happened to be Elsa, her older sister. 

Anna turned to see Elsa coming towards her. Oh joy.


	8. Talks

Elsa stomped right up to Anna, her eyes blazing with anger. Ice was trailing behind her, producing large spikes with each step. Elsa could not believe her sister. She wanted to tie Anna up and lock the young woman in her room for the rest of her days, not caring about anything else at the moment. Anna was in big trouble and not even her puppy dog look was going to be enough to save her this time.

Anna gulped, unsure whether to run or stand still. Either way Elsa would catch her, either by running or by blocking her path with a large amount of ice. Anna may have a large amount of energy, but even she couldn't outrun Elsa when she was angry.

Elsa stopped right in front of Anna, seething with anger, before grabbing her by the shoulders "Anna! what the heck were you thinking? I told you to stay in your room! How you got out I don't care, but your wound could easily reopen if you are too reckless! You can't just go around wildly like that, you'll get hurt even more!"

Elsa's face was almost purple by the time she finished yelling. Anna glowered, choosing to look at the ground. She couldn't really argue with Elsa on this one, she had disobeyed her and ignored her.

Elsa took Anna's hand and proceeded to drag her back to the castle. They were going to have a long discussion on this.

Kristoff stared at the girls retreating backs as Elsa began to all but drag Anna back to the castle. It was utterly surprising how close they were in these past few months, considering what Anna had told him about the 13 years that they had spent apart from one another.

Elsa really had been worried about Anna and her well being, so much so that she had been yelling loud enough for everyone in Arendelle to hear her. It was an amazing feat that she hadn't caused the city to be covered in ice again.

Having grown up with trolls, he knew what it felt like to have a family that cared for you. It seemed like Anna and Elsa were well on their way to gaining a family like that all on their own.

With a grinning Sven beside him, Kristoff followed the two girls back to the castle.

Meanwhile, Kayla walked in on Ranger, who was now finished with his daily workout.

Ranger was rubbing his arm. After doing a workout with such a heavy sword, his arms were bound to get tired, no matter the type of technique he did. He had worked very long and very hard in order to perfect his swordsmanship, but there was always room for improvement.

Kayla watched her friend. She had to admit, she was impressed with his technique as a swordsman, and she was curious as to how he had managed to gain his skills. She hadn't exactly learned very much about him, even in the short amount of time the two had known each other. He seemed very private about his past and more often then not, avoided the subject all together. Kayla hadn't pried about it very much, it was not even her business, so whether or not Ranger wished to tell her anything was entirely up to him.

Ranger's voice caught her out of her reverie. "Kayla, is everything alright?" Kayla looked at him, suddenly realizing that he was indeed talking to her. She shook her head.

"nothing Ranger, its alright."

Ranger shrugged "well, I'm going to go rest." He told her "holler if you need me." He said before walking out of the room.

Anna was sitting on her bed, with a very disapproving Elsa staring down at her. Elsa had dragged her down all the way to the castle, for a discussion that Anna was not at all looking forward to having.

She was only trying to have fun! Was that to much to ask for? She had tried reading a book, but it had gotten so boring. Who wanted to sit down in a room all day? Anna just couldn't sit still for very long; it wasn't in her nature. She just had to keep moving or she would just die of boredom. The best part was that she managed to find a way to have fun and even got to meet new people. Was there anything wrong with that?

Well considering that Elsa was giving her the glare of nightmares, Anna could only come up with one conclusion to that question. She was in a large amount of trouble.

Anna just sat there, unwilling to meet Elsa's gaze. In the wrong mood, Elsa could be one of the scariest people to ever walk the planet, and Anna didn't want to incur her wrath.

It wasn't like Anna was afraid of her sister. She never had been, not even when Elsa had accidently hit her with the blast of ice that froze her heart. There was never a reason for Anna to be THAT afraid of her sister. Sure Elsa might scare her with her bursts of anger, but that was more just out of how scary Elsa could be when she was angry more than Elsa herself being frightening.

Elsa's voice broke Anna out of her reverie. "Anna, why did you have to go and try that escape stunt out of the castle?"

Anna finally looked up at her sister, turquoise meeting ice. Anna gulped "oh Elsa, you know, I can't just sit still. You know me. I like running down the halls; did you think I could just sit here in one place for too long? I needed to go out and have some fun!"

Elsa folded her arms under her chest. "Anna. You were hurt, and while I can understand the need for you to have fun, you being as energetic as you are, there is the need for boundaries. That cut on your arm was very deep; it needs to be properly medical care, otherwise it could get infected. We wouldn't want that, now would we Anna?"

Anna, bit her lip. Elsa was right about that. She hadn't thought about that at all. Perhaps it was best to listen to Elsa this time, for her sake.

Anna smiled. "Ok". She told her sister. the said woman gave Anna a smile. "rest well Anna." she said before walking out of the room.

After Elsa left the room, she began the long trek back to her study. It had been a long day, and while Kai and Gerda had handled most of her morning meetings, she now had to catch up on a large amount of documents that she know had to look over, because of the predicament that Anna had put her through. Again, Kai and Gerda had probably done some of that too, but most likely for the sake of Elsa not having to do too much in case Anna managed to get her into trouble.

Not that Elsa was complaining; being the Queen did have its moments, but Elsa, despite having that title, was more concerned about her people, than goofing off like Anna was.

Anna's childish nature came from not having too many responsibilities. She wasn't raised to be the queen like Elsa was, nor did she really care. But that's what made Anna who she was, and Elsa loved her for it.

If there was one thing that did scare Elsa it was Anna's relationship with Kristoff. She didn't hate Kristoff nor have a negative opinion about the man. He was nice enough and seemed to genuinely care for Anna's feelings. He had his quirks (Elsa couldn't imagine anyone being friends with a reindeer, but hey she had a snowman for a friend so who was she to judge?) but Anna didn't seem to mind so why should she? On the other hand, Kristoffs job kept him away from Anna during the winter season, so if the two ended up getting married they would be together for 3/4th of the year, leaving the last 3 months for Anna to seek the company of others while her husband was off collecting ice.

That was in no way a bad thing; Anna always found a way to brighten up her day, even if everyone was miserable (which hadn't happened in any shape or form since the great thaw) and even managed to cheer everyone else up with her completely infectious attitude. It was times like that Elsa did enjoy Anna's childish personality.

So maybe in some ways Anna would never grow up. But to be honest Elsa was completely fine with that, as long as Anna matured for the greater responsibilities that she may have to face as an adult.

Elsa shook her head. She was hoping that things like that wouldn't happen until long after Anna was married. Which Elsa hoped wasn't to soon. She would rather Anna wait a few years; she was only 18 after all.

Anna sighed as she laid back on her bed staring at the ceiling, which looked like it was mocking her, even though it didn't have a face to do that with. It was times like this that she didn't really understand Elsa's regal personality. Sure being the queen wasn't exactly a picnic in all that; Elsa was constantly busy, but since Anna wasn't she didn't exactly see the need to follow Elsa's example, nor did she really want to. Anna enjoyed the freedom that not being the heir gave her. It allowed her to explore more of Arendelle (even though she knew the town like the back of her hand) and basically enjoy spending time with Olaf and Kristoff whenever she could. Not to mention it was most likely that if Anna was in charge of the Kingdom Arendelle wouldn't last a day. There had been one point where she and Elsa traded places for the day and while Elsa enjoyed her day, Anna was about ready to collapse by the end of it. she did not understand or even want to know how Elsa managed to do that every day.

The worst part was that the winner was to receive the chocolate of the loser and Anna had begrudgingly given up her share of chocolate to Elsa (not that it mattered Anna could survive without chocolate for a few days).

That being said Anna rather enjoyed the days were Elsa managed to get most of her day,(or even the entire day) off and spend it with her. On those days, Anna could convince Elsa to be a little bit more childish, and manage to get into trouble (on time having Kai ground them for a week) Elsa didn't know how Anna managed to convince her to do that, even Anna didn't know how she managed to do that.

Anna however did on some occasion join Elsa for in case there was the occasion where Anna did have to work on a day Elsa was otherwise incapable of doing so (though there had yet to be a day like that). It was very boring and Anna secretly hoped that such a day would never come, but if she had to be honest, it probably was going to happen at some point.

Either way Anna was currently confined to her room and probably shouldn't even try to escape this time, lest she provoke an even angrier reaction from Elsa, and probably force Elsa to take even more drastic measures to ensure that Anna do what she was told.

Anna turned on her side, now starring at the window. The sun was starting to set and she could just barely make out the sun in the horizon. It really was a beautiful day

Anna decided as soon as she was healed she was going to go back out in the town and have a fun day doing whatever she wanted and drag her friends along with her.

Meanwhile, Kayla and Ranger were cleaning more items that they had to return to their owners. It was late and they would rather get some sleep, but Kayla insisted on finishing their work before they got even more customers to deal with tomorrow. Not that it bothered either of them; it was their way of life.

Kayla however had a lot of fun hanging out with Anna; princess Anna of Arendelle had shown up to her fathers shop and hung out with her. That begged the question of…. How the hell did Ranger a foreigner of Arendelle be such good friends with the princess when he had only been around for not even a month?!

To Kayla it was rather confusing and she decided to ask her friend. " Ranger, how did… how do you know Princess Anna?"

Ranger looked up surprised by Kayla's question. He bit his lip "I met them on my first day here."

Kayla tilted her head in surprise. "You met… Queen Elsa too?" who had such luck as too meet both the Princess and the Queen on the same day unprovoked?

"hat happened?"

Ranger shrugged "nothing much to tell, I just got off the ship ran into them and the next thing I know, the princess just comes running into me earlier today and that's all she wrote."

Ranger was not going to reveal that he had flirted with Elsa, nor the circumstances behind it. Anna was already convinced of the fact that he and Elsa were in some form of relationship; he didn't need Kayla under the same impression as well.

Truth be told, despite his time traveling, Ranger never had any sort a relationship with a woman before. he had known some girls, but it was all just fleeting moments most of the time. Arendelle was the first time he had gotten to know woman as much as he had. Even then he barely knew much about Kayla because of his insistence to not get close to someone because he would inevitably leave the town in order to pursue other work.

Unfortunately for him, there was something about Arendelle that just told him that leaving wasn't in his best interest. Something just kept telling him to stay and he wasn't sure exactly what it was. He hadn't been here that long and frankly, didn't know anyone outside of Erhard and Kayla, so he didn't exactly know what it was the made him want to stay.

Perhaps the answer itself would be revealed in time, but in the case that it wasn't, he would leave at the end of the year after obtaining some more money; enough for him to leave and support himself until he found another job.

Ranger finally finished cleaning the final item that he had to deal with. He put it on the nearby table and then proceeded to walk into his bedroom. The room was small and simple, more than enough for him.

Ranger took off his shirt and laid on the bed. He frowned, rubbing his chest.

The scars still felt so fresh…. They still burned under his touch.

It had been a lifetime ago, but he would never forget the pain. The fear. No matter how much he ran, it would forever haunt him, like a ghost.

Breathing heavily, the young man closed his eyes and fell into an uneasy sleep.

Meanwhile, Elsa sat in her study scribbling away at the final document she had tonight. She was tired, but being the queen that she was, she refused to give herself breaks until she was completely finished with the task that was brought before her. Her duty was to her people not to herself.

It was like this every night. Elsa would constantly overwork herself and on some occasion, fall asleep in her study, forgetting to go to her own room to get the proper rest that everyone insisted that she needed.

Even so, Elsa wasn't too concerned. She was touched of course, but it didn't seem as important to her to get rest, as it was making sure the kingdom had its affairs in order. After all, if she didn't have the kingdom in good order, how was it going to prosper as a nation? There were few things she was going to take risk for and that was one of them. She would not allow, under any circumstance, allow Arendelle to fall into ruin.

However as she worked on tirelessly into the night, she felt her eyelids begin to droop. Her body's needs were catching up with her but she refused to lose to sleep. She had more work to do and she was not going to sleep until she was finished with everything that needed to be done.

However, her head started dipping and her eyes started drooping even more frequently. Her hand stilled as she slipped into the blissful sleep her body desired.

The door opened and in walked Gerda, who was there to check up on the young monarch. None to her surprise, she was dead asleep at work, snoring lightly, unaware that Gerda was even there.

Gerda shook her head, amused at her Queens condition. Would there ever be a day where Elsa would finish early, or at least manage to get to her room long before falling asleep after finishing her documents. Not likely, because of the determination she showed while she was working.

Tip toping as quietly as possible, Gerda took a blanket that she had with her (for she expected to find Elsa asleep and took precautions for the event which so often happened.) and placed it on Elsa

Elsa had such a difficult life, but in the end, everything had worked out for her. Sure there were burdens that Elsa still carried, but she was at peace for the most part.

After glancing once more at the young woman, Gerda quietly exited the room, leaving Elsa to sleep in peace.


	9. Of guards and days

**OK I hope you enjoy this chapter! this will accelerate the story and lead into the main plot of the story. Please enjoy! Review Follow and favorite! Also a Beta reader would be nice!**

* * *

The next morning Elsa found herself in her council chambers, reading over yet another important document. Unlike those she had read before, this one was pertaining directly to her. Thankfully it was not about marriage which she was dreading, but instead requested that she find a guard to accompany her.

In Elsa's own opinion, this was a mixed idea for her. While Arendelle did have its fair share of criminals, most were bandits outside of the city, rather than within the city walls. Despite this she could understand why the council was requesting this. There may come a time where Elsa may have to leave the city all together where protection might be needed, so it was a precaution, rather than a forced method.

However Elsa did find this idea rather intrusive. Did she need the guard to accompany everywhere?

She sighed and placed the document down. Glancing at the council members, she began to address the idea " Councilman Zodrian, are you sure that this is necessary?"

Councilman Zodrian was the former Captain of the Guard, having retired several years ago. He was an older man, pushing his late fifties, with greying brown hair and a goatee to match. He was a tough man, known to take great pride in his position and cared solely for the protection of Arendelle. After he retired he took the position of the consultant on the council passing on his wisdom to his replacement on the Guard. He was still a powerhouse in his own right though, not at all a match for younger guards in terms of stamina.

He was a very wise man and despite not knowing him very well, Elsa did take his advice into account whenever he saw fit to pass it on to her. To Elsa he couldn't be more invaluable because his time in the guard had been legendary.

Zodrian nodded "but of course your majesty; after all, one can never be to careful in this world. You're quite powerful, but you are no fighter, despite your capabilities.

Elsa grimaced. She hated it whenever people brought up her powers in relation to her fighting prowess. True she had fought off several guards with her powers, but she did so under stress. She had been practicing of course, but she was not a monster and she never wanted to be one. Using her powers for combat was the last thing she wanted to do.

Elsa nodded. "How then will we be proceeding with this?" she inquired to her councilman.

One of the councilmen gave her an answer. " your highness. We have several young men in the guard with quite the skill set that could be quite valuable to you as your personal guard. I suggest a contest of skill."

That certainly was a possibility; but allowing all the guard to test themselves would show who had the best skills among them, but there was more to it than just having skill.

Another councilman began talking "we must have skill yes, but there is also dedication. Any one guard could have skill, but will he show it effectively and fight to his last breath?"

Zodrian rubbed his chin. "That is true; we must schedule this immediately. Perhaps at the end of the week, your highness.

Elsa looked out the window, contemplating her choices. It would be the most effective way of selecting the individual that would become her guard. However, it was still somewhat of a nuisance to her. She hated the idea of someone constantly watching her throughout her normal day. What about the days she spent with Anna, would the guard just constantly follow her through each of Anna's antics (Anna would need several guards just to accomplish that much) because of how energetic the young girl was.

Still the council did have a point and she saw no reason to argue with them on the matter.

Elsa turned to Kai "Kai write the final draft and prepare every available guard. Everyone needs to be ready. I expect them to be prepared for the selection process."

Kai nodded "at once your highness." He said, before rushing out of the room. The council soon followed.

Elsa stood up. She was almost frustrated. After a very long and painfully dull meeting the only thing that she had managed to accomplish was a contest that would end with her having a personal guard.

It was going to be a long process and Elsa was not looking forward to it. she wanted to keep her independence and not really on any guard for protection.

With a sigh, Elsa walked out of the room. She wanted a long vacation, and she wanted it before having to deal with the guard tryouts tomorrow.

* * *

Elias, wearing his heavy, Viking inspired armor walked into the training ground. His long hair was wrapped into a ponytail and he carried his sword by his side. His eyes were focused and he wanted absolutely no type of distraction whist he was training. Tomorrow was the guard tryouts and he wanted to be ready. While it was good to say there wasn't going to be any competition for the upcoming contest. His skill was renowned among the other guards and he doubted that his colleagues were going to be putting up as much of a fight as he was. The other guards looked up to him as a mentor and aspired to be just like him. Of course, there had been no one to match his skill set anyway; he never even had a rival growing up. He took his training very seriously. It had been all he had known.

He would take his place as the Queens guard and then, she would be all his.

Olaf happily walked down the hall. He had a very good day, involving playing in the gardens and planted his own field (which Elsa allowed him to do under the strict supervision of the gardeners due to an incident where Olaf ate the flowers.)

As he walked down the hall, he noticed Elsa, looking rather distressed. Maybe he would be able to help! After all, warm hugs were the key to everything. He happily bounced to Elsa, squealing "Hi" to the queen.

Elsa jumped completely off guard by the snow mans loud voice. After managing to calm her heart rate, Elsa looked down at the grinning snowman. He was giving her a wide smile like he always did.

"Elsa, why do you look so upset?"

Elsa stared at Olaf, unsure about what she had to say to him. Olaf was by far the most innocent being to ever walk the planet. He was like a child and he probably wouldn't understand anything she would end up saying to him.

So she settled for the old fashion way. "Its just Queen stuff Olaf. I have to deal with it. it's for the best." She said, hoping to satisfy Olaf's curiosity

Olaf's eyes widened, before his grin fell into a frown "why?"

Elsa shrugged "because its an good idea"

"Why?" Olaf asked looking even more confused than satisfied, as Elsa had hoped

Elsa opened her mouth once more "because…"

"Why?" Olaf asked once again

Dear god, Olaf had entered the incessant curiosity stage of childhood. He needed to know the answer for everything.

* * *

Meanwhile Kayla awoke late that morning. To her surprise, the sun was already high in the sky. She sat up abruptly, giving a gasp. She never slept in this late. She was always up before dawn. What had happened that had caused her to sleep in? She got off the bed and immediately started getting ready for her day. She slipped out of her nightgown and into a simple black dress. She managed to comb her hair and wash up a little as well, but she didn't have the luxury of being able to sit in a warm bath like she normally did because of how late it was.

Afterwards she walked towards the shop passing by Rangers room. As she passed, she heard something in there. Pressing her ear to the door, she was shocked to hear crying. She opened the door and saw Ranger quietly moaning something in his sleep "Mama! Papa! Per favore!" he cried. He was clutching the sheets tightly

Kayla quietly tiptoed over to the young man and grabbed his shoulder gently. "hey." She said loudly, hoping to wake him up "wake up!"

Kayla's efforts weren't as successful as she hoped. He didn't wake up, but his moaning subsided and he quietly calmed down. His breathing slowed.

Kayla stepped back shocked. Without a word, she left the room.

* * *

Anna moaned as she slumped into her pillow. She was so bored. Since she was locked up in her room as per Elsa's request there was nothing much for her to do. Maybe Elsa would allow her to leave, but that didn't seem very likely.

Anna huffed. She wanted to be with Elsa right now, but she was grounded to put it plain and simple. Elsa wanted her to learn a lesson (like Anna was really going to learn anyway) but all she managed to accomplish was Anna being very frustrated and bored.

If only she had Olaf to alleviate her boredom. The little snowman could always find a way to brighten her day. Unfortunately for Anna, Elsa probably had him.

The woes of being grounded.

As she was thinking, a voice from the other side of the door made itself known. It was Gerda "Princess Anna!" came the calm voice of the Queens maid "Queen Elsa has requested your presence."

This definitely shocked Anna. She was under the impression that Elsa wanted her to stay in her room. It had only been a day, and not even a full day at that. Anna quickly opened the door, revealing the maid. Gerda gave Anna a smile "she wants you to join her for lunch"

Anna's face broke into a wide grin. "Thanks Gerda!" she said and without skipping beat, she ran down to meet up with Elsa.

* * *

Anna quickly walked into the dining room, where she found Elsa waiting for her. Elsa had a smile on her face, but Anna noticed a small hint of sadness in her eyes.

To Anna, it seemed that Elsa was upset about something, but it was likely that she was not going to tell her. Elsa was just like that most of the time.

It always had to do with queen stuff. Anna giggled. It wasn't like Anna was going to understand much of what Elsa had to say about her queenly duties. In all honesty, Anna would rather fall asleep than deal with what Elsa had to do.

Being the princess is what Anna was good with. So it was better to stick with that as opposed to trying to be like Elsa

Anna went to the very large dining table and sat down across from Elsa a knowing grin on her face. She was not about to allow Elsa to skip this conversation. If there was one thing that Elsa was good at it was using her diplomat skills to avoid any sort of conversation. However, Anna was determined not to allow her to do that this time

Anna quickly got to the point. "Ok Elsa, what's on your mind?" she asked.

Elsa quickly stiffened, obviously annoyed by Anna's obviously quick question. With a smile she just waved her hand and said "nothing Anna, its just been a very long day and I had to sort some things out with the council" she said, obviously trying to dismiss the whole notion.

Once again Anna was not going to let this go. She quickly gave Elsa a glare and said "Elsa how long have we been sisters?"

Elsa sighed, "since you were born Anna." why did she think that Anna was going to let this go?

"That's right." Anna told her "so do you want to tell me what's the matter?" she asked.

Elsa gave her sister a fake smile, desperately trying to hide her discomfort in the situation. Anna, if she had been paying any attention to Elsa's duties (probably not) would know that she was to get a personal guard.

"Well Anna, it seems that the council wishes for me to have a personal guard."

Anna gasped, but it was out of surprise rather than contempt. She had to hide her smile. This was too perfect! Even though guards were to compete for this, she could have Kai (secretly of course) send out to get ranger to compete as well. By doing so, she could have a guard she trusted to guard Elsa and Elsa could get a boyfriend! It as a win/win situation.

Anna put on a fake frown "well, that's disappointing." She said hiding her sheer joy. "And here I thought that you wouldn't need one."

Elsa shrugged her shoulders "Anna, its for my own protection, and perhaps yours too."

Anna scoffed. Arendelle was a very peaceful city and aside from the attempt on Elsa's life by Hans, there hadn't been very much trouble that the guards of Arendelle hadn't been able to handle themselves.

Anna quietly dug her fork into her meal and started eating. Elsa followed suit. The fact that a guard would be following them was quite unnerving, because they liked their privacy, and it wasn't like they left the castle very often. Anna left to see Kristoff and that was pretty much it.

A guard would just more than likely get in the way. Anna shuddered. The idea of a guard following her on her dates was just a little bit disturbing. She and Kristoff were publicly in a relationship, and some people were against the idea of them together as it was. She enjoyed the affection they publicly shared, as well as privately. Having a guard would make it significantly more disturbing.

In Elsa's case, Elsa knew very little about the guards that worked for her. She was also very quiet and most likely would not take much time to talk to whoever would be guarding her. It just was how Elsa was. It was not in Elsa's nature to be very talkative, because of how she had grown up. It was the only regret that Anna ever held over her parents. Had they been a little more open maybe Elsa could have been different.

Either way it no longer mattered. They couldn't change what had happened. Besides, Elsa had much more control than ever before.

Anna smiled as she took another bite of her food.

Elsa also took a bite of her food. She was not very happy about the situation either, but there was nothing she could do about it.

The two remained silent, until the two girls stood up. Kai approached them and said "your majesties, will you require anything else?" he asked them

Elsa shook her head, before smiling at Anna and walking out of the room. After she left, Anna walked up to Kai she needed to speak to him.

"Kai, Elsa needs a guard right?"

Kai nodded. Anna smiled "could you do me a favor?" she asked the older man

* * *

Erhard and Kayla were at the front of the shop trying to get it ready for the day, when Ranger walked into the room. To Kayla's surprise, he had a scowl on his face, and it no doubt had to do with the nightmare that he had earlier that morning.

Erhard noticed the irritated look on his face. However he didn't ask. Instead he cut right to the chase "Ranger, get that blasted look off your face. We've got customers and we can't have them scared.

Ranger growled. He was not in the mood for being yelled at. He had a terrible night and he was not happy at all. Kayla was staring at him with concern. Her room was not to far from his own. She must of have heard him. His nightmares were vivid and he often woke up crying and in some cases screaming.

He never talked about it though. He never had too. That was never going to change. He stomped over to the tools that Erhard wanted him to clean. He roughly grabbed a tool and began cleaning it

Kayla noticed his rather rough attitude, but decided not to ask. She had never seen Ranger angry, and by the looks of it, he seemed so angry that it would be best not to talk to him. Instead she just continued with her own work.

As she worked, she stole glances at her friend. She wanted to help him, but she wasn't sure how she would be able to do so.

As they worked, a man walked in. he was about bald, with brown hair. But what really surprised them was the fact he was wearing royal looking cloths. He had a focus look on his face.

The man glanced at Erhard. "Excuse me, my name his Kai, and I need to ask you something."

Erhard looked at the man "what can I do for you sir?" he recognized the man as Kai a man that was very close with the Queen and Princess of Arendelle

"I'm looking for a young man by the name of ranger." Kai said.

Kayla was confused. Why would a nobleman come looking for Ranger? What was going on?

Ranger glared at the older man. "What do you want with me Pops?" asked, sounding rather bored

Kai glanced at the young man unfazed by the sarcastic remark. "The princess has requested your presence. Please come with me." He said

Ranger bit his lip. Why would the princess want him to come to the castle? They had lunch yesterday, but that wasn't nearly grounds to be called to the castle without any explanation at all.

However, there was no really need to argue with this man, so he followed the man out the door .


	10. Oh Joy

**OK I hope you enjoy this chapter! Thank you All!**

* * *

Elsa sat in the stands of her training arena, watching as the new recruits were trying very hard to impress her with her skills. They needn't worry, because she was already growing bored. Many of her guard's skills were rudimentary at best. They had promise, but they lacked drive. There was only one who showed promise that might work was her guard captain, Elias. He was quick and nimble, but showed strength that was all his own. He was the guard captain after all. Still there was a wave of arrogance to him. His strokes showed power and skill.

Elsa groaned and shoved her hand into her face. What was the point of this? If the only guard that was worthy of being her personal guard was her guard captain then what was the point of having these tryouts?

Anna approached her. Elsa was honestly surprised that Anna had asked to be here with Elsa. It was boring and Anna didn't particularly care. Elsa was honestly surprised that Anna had asked. They only reason she had said yes (because Anna was still grounded) was because Elsa had wanted her company during this process. Yet Anna had a smug smirk on her face the whole time, as if she was expecting something.

Elsa shrugged it off. Anna was just probably wondering if Elsa was going to check out of the guards. Of course, Elsa couldn't really care less about it.

Elsa wondered why Anna would even care. Of course she was her sister so there was that. But Anna was just being intrusive. Elsa didn't want to get married any time soon.

Why Anna was so intent on getting a boyfriend for her, Elsa didn't quite know. It was just no fun whatsoever for her. There were a lot of things that Elsa had to take into consideration for marriage, the least of which was love. Sure she didn't wanted to be trapped in a loveless marriage (not that she was interested in getting married at the moment) but there were more important matters. The suitor that Elsa would marry needed to have Arendelle's best interest at heart.

Anna didn't have to worry about that with Kristoff. She had found love and even better, Anna wasn't obligated to rule Arendelle, or Any other country for the matter.

She was lucky in that regard.

Either way, Elsa just wanted Arendelle to be safe.

Anna noticed Elsa's pensive look. Elsa was great at keeping her emotions in check and hide exactly what she was feeling. But after getting to know Elsa, Anna was quick to learn when she was hiding her emotions.

Right now, Elsa was hiding what she was thinking.

She was bored and disinterested in the affairs going on right now.

Anna grinned to herself. Her plan was about to be executed. She wanted to make this work.

Elsa had no idea what she had done. Of course she was very likely to be mad at her for it, but she might be happy in the long run.

Now the only problem was making sure that it worked.

Anna nudged Elsa's arm, startling her out of he daze.

Elsa glanced at her younger sister.

"Elsa, I can tell that your not exactly having fun here. Sleeping during things like this is usually my thing.

Elsa gasped. She was turning into Anna. She groaned and her face fell into her hands.

"Oh my god." she moaned. Looking up at Anna. She bit her lip. "This isn't the best day I've had."

Anna giggled, "Elsa, you always have a bad day with the amount of stuff you do. You work far to hard."

"Being queen doesn't mean I have the luxury of taking breaks Anna. If I fall behind, I wouldn't be doing a good job at being queen now would I?"

Anna giggled, leaning back. "Glad I'm not queen."

Elsa smiled. "Of course you are." She said." Being a princess has its moments too though."

Anna smiled "can't argue with that."

Elsa turned back to the field. The guard candidates were still practicing with one another. However something at the edge of the field caught her eye. A person in armor that looked vaguely familiar.

He was walking into the field, with a focused look on his face.

He had a sword in his left hand. Elsa gasped as she realized who it was.

It was the young man she had met several weeks ago at the docks, when she met up with Anna. What was he doing here? He wasn't a part of her guard!

Elsa quickly stood up and walked across the field walking past the guards who were still training. She strut right up to the young man "what are you doing here?"

Ranger walked into the field confused. He had been personally asked by the queen to partake in a tournament. It was a rather odd request. Arendelle was peaceful, or so he heard, but according to the Queens advisor he was to be a candidate.

Oddly still, the queen never saw him after their first encounter, so why had the older man even bothered? Sure you couldn't argue with one, but the queen did not know anything about him?

This would be fun though. it had been far too long since he had been able to use a sword for a fight .

Hopefully, he would find some worth out of this.

As he walked out into the field, he noticed ta young woman walking right up to him a look of anger on her face.

"What are you doing here?" she screamed.

Ranger cocked his head, staring at the angry eyes that were glaring right back "what are you talking about?" he asked

Elsa growled, "what game are you playing?" she almost yelled at him

Ranger was surprised by the Queens attitude. She had just told her she needed him for this… contest. Now she was angry with him for being here? What was she talking about?

Ranger gave Elsa a look of contempt. "Look your worship, I don't know what type of game you signed me up for, all I know is that I'm here because you asked me to be here."

Elsa gasped. What was this guy talking about? She hadn't asked for anyone to be here if they weren't already a guard. She felt ice materialize in her hand, even as she tried to keep herself from screaming any further.

Ranger stared into the angry blue eyes that were trying desperately to burn a hole in his face. Elsa was very close to him and he could feel her breath on his skin, even if she was angry. Up close she was very beautiful.

Elsa growled and stepped back. She did have authority to kick him out, but she had to find out what he was doing here. She rubbed her temple and asked "who brought you here?"

Ranger shrugged "older man, portly…"

Elsa held up a hand. She knew exactly who had brought him here. Now she only had to figure out as to why he was brought here. She would need to have a little talk with Kai later about this

And just what was he thinking bringing a civilian into her guard selection process? In all the time that she had known this young man, all he had one was manage to infuriate her to the point she couldn't even think straight.

Ranger on the other hand was just as confused as Elsa was. He had just been minding his own business when the old man showed up telling him about this… whatever it was

Before she could open her mouth to continue however, Ranger started to talk. "Listen princess. I'm only here because I was asked to be. I will be happy to leave once I fight."

Elsa gave Ranger a frown. Was he serious? According to Anna, he was just a blacksmith. How on Earth was he going to be able to fight her trained guards?

"And just what makes you think you can take them on." Elsa asked him

Ranger gave Elsa a wide grin "because I'm better than them."

Elsa's eyes widened. She felt ice materialize in her hand. How dare…. He was insulting her guards like that. She through up her hands and let out a groan

This guy was so infuriating. She wanted so badly to freeze him in a block of ice, or slap him, or just up and kill him. Of course she was the queen so that couldn't really happen.

She really needed to learn to control herself during this situation.

Ranger smiled smugly "careful your majesty, you wouldn't want to go around looking angry, now would you?"

Elsa glared at him, feeling her face go red. What was with this guy? He was constantly flirting with her, was so cocky that it made her unable to concentrate…. Ugg! It made her. So mad!

"I want you out of my castle… Now!" Elsa growled

Ranger simply shrugged "sorry your majesty, but I don't take orders from you." He said before walking past her and into the training area with the other guards.

Elsa watched him walk away growing more livid. How dare this man just up and… ugh!. She was about to chase him when she felt had hand land on her shoulder. Turning. She found Kai who was looking rather unashamed of the action that he had committed.

He gave Elsa a sad smile. "Forgive me your majesty, but I was acting under the orders of Princess Anna."

Elsa gasped. Of course. It had to be her sister.

Elsa turned to see Anna, who was trying desperately to sneak away

Oh no! She was not going to get way from this that easily.

Elsa quickly stomped her way back to Anna, who squeak with fear as she saw the look of anger in Elsa's eyes

"Anna!" she screamed, "Get over here!"

Anna stiffened scared at the sound of Elsa's voice. She was really mad!

She made her way to Elsa, trying not to look afraid. There wasn't much that Anna could do to explain her self. All she wanted was a good guard for Elsa. Was that to much to ask?

Apparently so, because Elsa was absolutely angry with her. Elsa hated it when Anna disregarded her in any matters that regarded things that shouldn't concern her. Here Elsa was with several Men who would be capable of protecting her, and now Anna was trying to complicate the matter.

It was not exactly a good thing to do

Elsa stopped in front of her younger sister, giving the younger girl a disapproving glare and tapping her foot.

Anna gave Elsa a smile "so…. Uh…" Anna couldn't say the right words. It was just not going to work right now.

The Princess shuffled her feet. There was absolutely no way that she was going to get out of this one. Elsa had caught her. There was no denying that.

All Anna wanted was to make sure that Elsa was safe. Her guard was very capable; there was no doubt about that whatsoever. Anna would just like it better if it was someone she trusted.

Elsa continued giving Anna a cold glare waiting for her explanation. Why Anna would go through the trouble was beyond her, usually Anna would just let political matters run there course; she wasn't usually involved.

The two monarchs continued to stare at each other, unwilling to say anything until the other did. It was a very bad situation at the moment. Kai was watching from a distance

The silence was finally broken however, when Anna screamed, "it seemed like a good idea!" So loudly that Elsa nearly jumped from surprise.

Elsa, after managing to calm down, groaned, "Anna, just because it seemed like a good idea, does not mean it's a good thing to do!" she told her "why would you-?"

"Oh come on Elsa. Its not like he-!"

Her rambling was cut off when Elsa used her ice to freeze her mouth shut.

"Keep your voice down!" she whispered harshly. The last thing she needed was people hearing something like that.

Anna wiped her mouth, almost shrieking from the cold sensation. After a few moments she was able to thaw her mouth.

Kai approached the two. "Your majesties, I'm sorry, but you really should sit."

That was Kai for "stop fooling around and sit"

Elsa and Anna jumped at the sound of Kai's voice. Even at this day in age, he was still able to shock them into stopping anything that the to of them were doing. It was the one thing that he was able to do

They glared at him, but he just continued to stare them down. it was never going to work.

Begrudgingly the two returned to their seats and sat down calmly

Anna sat down, trying very hard to suppress her smile. Sure Elsa was probably upset with her, but it was probably going to be worth it, if worked as well as she wanted it to

Elsa was so stubborn but it was for naught sometimes, at least in Anna's opinion. It wasn't a bad thing, but Elsa's attitude could really get on her nerves sometimes.

Anna hoped that Elsa would soon find that this was indeed a good thing.

Anna had found love with Kristoff (which was the best thing that could have happened to her) and Anna was hoping that Elsa could do the same. Anna just wanted Elsa to have the same chance.

Sure Elsa would probably continue to give her a stern talking to once this was over, but in the meantime, Elsa would just sit there quietly. Watching as the guards continued to show their skills.

It would have to work out

Elsa on the other hand was almost ready to freeze Anna for what her younger sister had done. Her guards were all she needed and here Anna was interfering with everything that needed to be done

All Elsa wanted was for everything to go well. Anna however, was going to complicate that with her plans

She wished Anna would stop doing things like that; Elsa never did anything to interfere with Anna's (unless Anna was about to get into some trouble, which she so often did). It was just not needed whatsoever, in Elsa's opinion.

Unfortunately though, Elsa really had no choice in the matter right now. Though she may not like what Anna had done, it would be unfair to just up and ignore someone who could help.

The guards were still handling themselves very well and not at all fighting down to the last man as of yet.

Elsa always knew that her guard did work hard and that was exactly what she was looking for in a personal guard.

The problem was that she didn't know the guards under her as well as she could.

Being the Queen meant that she had a lot of duties to attend to, and her guards did very little that connected straight to her. She only ever spoke to Zodrian, her military councilman on a regular basis and even then, it was all about business to her.

Zodrian rarely spoke of his personal life; there was really just no need to.

Anna was a far more positive person and she spent a lot more time with others than Elsa did (though it was usually with Olaf during a normal routine day) and therefore knew a lot more about the person she was hanging out with. It wasn't like it was a bad thing and in all honestly, Elsa didn't mind it at all

However now that she was going to have a guard follow her, getting to know her guard was bound to happen (unless she just decided to ignore or fire him) she wasn't a talkative person unless she needed to be, and if all a guard was doing was protecting her, that was all that was needed.

She watched as they continued to fight. They moved very gracefully and fought bravely, even if it was just a training match. It surprised her just how well they were doing, considering that she never spent any time with them. It wasn't much of her business anyway.

She smiled. Maybe she was just overreacting to this situation. She could always give her personal guard the day of if she wanted or dismiss him if she needed some privacy, whether that be with her sister, or just to be alone.

Her guards were very loyal to her, and that was one thing that was appreciated. She liked that she could trust them

Anna on the other hand was watching one particular person. She wanted her candidate to be the one to guard Elsa. It just couldn't happen any other way. If she could just get her sister to like her choice, then that would also be a plus for her.

Elsa probably wouldn't like it all too much, but it was better than someone who might take the job far to seriously.

Anna may not think the guards were important enough to guard Elsa since no crime was that bad in Arendelle (it was mostly robbery). But she would have better faith in some more than others.

Either way, it was happening, as she was honestly glad it was.

She looked at Elsa who was sitting as regal as always. She was sitting tall and straight-backed, with a smile on her face. It was how she always looked whenever she was doing something queenly.

Anna could never do that. She was clumsy and uncoordinated, but no one really minded. She just enjoyed that she was herself, and no one could take that way from her.

Elsa glanced at her and smiled. They didn't really need to say anything. They were both happy.

However as they looked back at the guards, they suddenly gasped and screamed


	11. Deadly duel

**OK let me just start by saying T****hank you! you guys are awesome! This is the most fun i've had writing this time. **

* * *

Ranger was busy fighting his first opponent in the little game that he was uprooted into (not that he was impressed at all, he had fought tougher opponents in his life). He was already annoyed. Arendelle's guard were some of the most pitiful people that he had ever had the opportunity to be around. They weren't exactly on par with a large amount of other kingdoms. They would be able to put up a good fight, but he had seen better sword play in the past.

Maybe he wasn't given them enough credit; Arendelle had long since been a pacifist kingdom; they lacked the large war front other kingdoms possessed. It relied on the neighboring kingdoms for its support.

Which would explain why the guards fought so clumsily. They lacked the drive to protect the kingdom. They're a large amount of enemies that Arendelle had.

They were going to need all the help they could get.

From what he had heard about Elsa, Elsa was a very powerful queen; both in her diplomacy, and of course (since it was well known at this point.) her ice powers.

But whether or not the Queen would resign herself to fighting wars was a different road all together.

He had spoken to many of the tons people about Elsa's activities in the past few months following her coronation. She had spent her time dealing with other kingdoms, making sure that Arendelle was well nourished and thriving. If there were any negative events happening, it was Elsa that was hiding them

Elsa from what he had heard was a fair queen and did not seek more power; she just wanted what was best for her people.

His sword clanged against his opponents with a loud bang or metal on metal. The guard was in control; that is if Ranger was fighting him seriously.

Ranger was practically sleepwalking right now. He was blocking the guard's strike with little to no effort. He had fought more challenging opponents in his childhood (not that he wanted to)

With a flick of his wrist, he swiped directly at the guard's chest, causing him to stumble and lose his footing. Ranger then leaped forward, kicking the man in the chest. The said guard went flying and landed sprawled on the ground.

Ranger gave his opponent a grin and said, "you lose"

The guard stood up and bowed walking off. Well at least he was respectful and not a sore loser.

Ranger then turned and saw something that made his heart stop dead. in another section of the grounds he saw a guard hacking and slashing at his opponent with brute strength. His opponent was practically on his knees, trying to survive the onslaught.

Suddenly the guard tripped and fell backward. The brutal guard grinned and walked off.

Ranger frowned. He had a feeling that this guy was going to end up being a whole lot of trouble

The rest of the guards seemed to be finished as well, so the next bracket of the selection would no doubt begin soon enough.

He grimaced. This was a complete joke. These guards were barely combat ready and even if they were skilled, it was but practice. Most of these guards seemed to relaxed, and it was not going to help them at all in a battle. The Queen wanted one of them for her personal guard? They were going to need all the help that they could get.

He turned to face his next opponent. He was quite large, one of those huge hulking types.

Ranger sighed. This was going to be too easy.

The guard roared and ran towards him, sword raised. Ranger rolled to the side, dodging the slash then leaded up, punching the guard right in the face. The guard stumbled, then feel to the ground dead to the world.

All too easy.

He stood there waiting for his next opponent. Unsurprisingly, none of them were finished with their fights.

After some minutes, most of the guards were disqualified for the role of Elsa guards. There were only four left, Ranger, Elias and two other guards that had showed some potential in the contest (which wasn't much when you consider that some of them were just too easy to beat)

It seemed that it was all coming down to this. The final four. Ranger frowned. This wasn't going to be much of a challenge for him at all.

So much for a great day. He turned to see the final opponent that he had before he would become one of the top candidates. He was brawny, but seemed more balanced then the previous one.

Ranger raised his sword, while his opponent took a defensive stance. Ranger took notice. Rather than speed, this guy looked more like the type to use the opponents moves against him.

Too bad ranger wasn't like a normal guard.

Ranger ran forward, swinging his sword. The guard blocked it, before jumping back, for room, then swung a broad stroke. Ranger managed to evade the attack, before thrusting his sword forward like a spear. The tip smashed in the guards shoulder, eliciting a scream. The guard dropped to the ground from the momentum, clutching his wound.

Ranger frowned

"sorry" he said as he turned away.

Not much of a fight was he?

Finally it seemed as though this little farce was almost over only one guard remained.

This one was quite different from the others. He had long brown hair and matching eyes. His build was muscular, but not so much that it would slow him down. He looked like a real warrior.

Ranger grinned. It was the same guard he saw at the beginning of the contest. He was a brutal fighter.

Ranger chuckled. "Well them, shall we begin?' he asked his opponent

The guard nodded raising his sword in response. This was going to be quite the fight.

Ranger circle around his opponent, while said person did the same. The tension was thick; it seemed that neither combatant was going to make a move unless the other did.

Ranger was focused. It had been a long time since he felt the rush of battle in his veins. He grinned. This was going to be great.

With a roar, Elias charged at Ranger, with such speed, the Ranger raised his sword almost immediately, quickly blocking the powerful strike. The force of said strike was so strong, Ranger almost staggered back, but he managed to hold his footing.

Ranger pushed back against the blade. Elias was strong indeed. With a burst of energy, Ranger shoved Elias back, causing the guard to stumble, but he recovered enough to block Rangers attack.

It was quite the fight. Both contestants were of near equal skill. The more one pressed on the attack, the more one matched it. it was almost a complete stalemate.

Ranger stepped back from the battle. It was hopeless. Elias was just too good. his attacks showed skill, while his defense was nearly impossible to break. He was definitely the best guard Elsa had

Elias charged again, but suddenly, unlike before, swung his sword horizontally, causing ranger to block from the side, leaving him completely open to attack. Elias punched him hard. Ranger stumbled back, clutching his chest. In the process, his sword clattered to the ground.

Ranger stared at Elias. He hadn't won yet. Elias charged once again, causing ranger to jump over the headstrong warrior. As he jumped, Ranger flipped. As Elias turned to meet him, Ranger kicked him square in the face. Elias screamed, but fell to the ground. He had lost.

Ranger stared at Elias. It was over. He had won.

He would now have to serve Queen Elsa as he personal bodyguard. While it might be tedious, it would have to be done.

Ranger grinned. He glanced at Elsa, who was talking to Anna in the stands. They turned and met his eyes, but suddenly, their faces became one of horror

he stiffened. Something didn't feel right. Suddenly he heard Elias roar once again. Ranger turned, but was met with a sword rushing towards him.

Ranger tried to dodge but the sword slamed into his shoulder. There was a ear splitting, blood curtling sound of breaking metal as the sword cut through his armor and into his chest. Ranger screamed as he stumbled back, clutching his gaping wound. The blood seeped through his armor into his open hand, leaving a pool of blood on the floor. His vision became blurry and he fell to his knees, before collapsing on the ground as his world went dark.

Elsa screamed as her hands flew to her mouth in shock. Elias had deliberately attacked Ranger… and wounded him. she watched as the young man fell to the ground unconscious, while Elias raised the now blood tipped sword in triumph.

There was no cry of victory, there was no congratulations. There was only silence and the wrath of the now angry snow queen.

Elsa stood up from the stands her ice blue eyes blazing with anger. A blizzard was sweeping around her, her hands glowing with energy.

"Elias" she screamed her voice booming (odd considering her petite frame) she stomped down to the grounds and marched right up to the vicious guard.

Anna on the other hand quickly called to the other guards, ordering them to take Ranger to the medial wing.

Pure and utter rage was coursing through Elsa's veins as she walked up to Elias. The guards taking Rangers unconscious form was not even her concern. She was too busy trying to murder Elias with her eyes.

Elias's brown eyes locked onto her angry blue ones. He quickly bowed to her, "my queen it is an honor-"

"SILENCE!" Elsa interrupted him. Elias looked up at Elsa in confusion. He had won. He was her personal guard!

"You have deliberately wounded your opponent." Elsa said seething "you violated every principle of this guard. For your treasonous act, you are relieved of your duty as the captain of my guard." Elsa said. "Take him away!" she screamed. she waved her hand and several guards grabbed Elias, dragging him out of the grounds and out of Elsa's sights

Elsa then turned and was planning on walking back to her council chambers to discuss the now pressing issue of her new captain being needed.

However Ann ran to catch up with her. "Elsa!" she cried. The Snow Queen looed at her younger sister. Tears were streaming down her face and her eyes were blood shot. Elsa felt her heart clench with guilt. Ana had brought Ranger for the tryouts, but instead had managed to get him injured. She was feeling so guilty about it.

Elsa sighed. "Anna" she said it wasn't your fault." She hugged her sister, allowing the princess to cry on her shoulder. Anna's body was racking with sobs.

Elsa rubbed circles on Anna's back. She shouldn't have seen this. It was horrifying. Elsa wished that she hadn't allowed Anna to be here today.

Anna continued to wail. Thankfully, all the guards had left, so no one could see them. Elsa frowned "Anna, lets get you back to bed ok?" she definitely needed it after what had happened today.

Elsa took Anna back to her room, Anna crying the whole way. Elsa managed to get her into a sleeping outfit and tucked her in. the princess then fell into a fitful sleep. Elsa sighed as she left the room.

Whatever Anna had been thinking, it was made worse by the fact her guest was injured in such a brutal attack. Why hadn't anyone seen what her former guard captain was capable of? It made her sick. Elsa felt her stomach do flips.

The blood. There was so much blood. The blade must of cut through very deeply. She felt bile rise in her throat.

Just how was he doing? She couldn't imagine that he was conscious after so much blood had been lost. Was he even alive? Elsa made her way to the medical wing.

She found the room where she opened the door to find several of her medical staff huddled over a bed with Ranger lying in it. The head doctor was still trying to stitch the overwhelmingly large wound that he had sustained in the attack.

"Doctor ?" Elsa asked. The said doctor turned around "your majesty, his wound is very deep, and I'm afraid that he is lost a lot of blood. I tried to stable him, but it is proving very difficult"

Elsa bit her lip. So the doctors were doing there best to try and keep him alive. "Is he alright otherwise?"

doctor Jen turned back to the bed, Then looked at Elsa " he will scar, not that it makes much of a difference."

Elsa stared at him puzzled "what do you mean?"

doctor Jen sighed "whoever this man… what happened…" the doctor fumbled for something to say, "he has a lot of scars your majesty, some over a decade old."

Elsa stared at the doctor and looked at the bed. Gauze was covering Rangers chest, but not his arms . They were covered with scars.

What had happened to him? That wasn't an accident.

Doctor Jen then turned away. Elsa closed the door and tried to stop herself from choking. Those scars… what had happened?

Elsa felt her anger rise. She made her her way to the cells. She had to take care of Elias.

She entered the cold dark dungeon. Its cruelty never ceased to amaze her. As a child she never went in and it still gave her the chills to walk in there. It was rarely ever used because Elsa was known to be kind.

Elsa stomped over to Elias who was siting on his bunk. He gave Elsa a glare of contempt. Of course he was mad. He had been stripped of his rank and thrown in a cell.

Elsa felt her blood boil as she glared at her former captain "do you know why your in here?" she growled.

Elias gave her a scorned look "I'm in here because you threw me in here!" he yelled.

Elsa growled. Elias was trying to play innocent?! "you attacked him Elias. It was over! That man in wounded because of you!" she felt ice under her feet. "you will remain here until I decide!"

She turned and walked away, trying to keep her cool. She exited the dungeon and walked. Just walked. She needed to find Councilman Zodrian. She needed to have a talk with him.

Elias's behavior needed to be called into question. Just how his father would handle it was another matter all together.

She walked into the castle making her way to the council chambers. She needed to talk to Zodrian alone.

She walked into the council chambers, where, no doubt, she found Zodrian alone. He looked… afraid. It was odd. He was no doubt afraid because of Elias.

Elsa walked up to him. He bowed "your majesty" he said. His voice grave "I wanted to apologize for the actions of the guard captain."

Elsa raised her hand "no excuses, councilman. It wasn't your fault" she said

Zodrian huffed. It was likely he didn't agree. Elias was his responsibility. He had failed miserably, as far as he was concerned

"He is in a cell" Elsa told him. Zodrian shook his head "I'm not sure that I should see him, your majesty." He told her with a grave tone in his voice. It sounded like he had given up on Elias.

Elsa stiffened. It was his child, his own flesh and blood. Zodrian was leaving him behind? He couldn't… Elsa frowned at him "we need to discuss his consequence. You're his father, I would like your advice on this matter."

Zodrian huffed again "he was always a fighter, my queen. He will fight this."

Elsa nodded "I understand." Elias was a loose cannon and a soldier. He would not like being released, but Elsa couldn't have someone like that walking around. It would not be beneficial to her if he remained.

Elsa sighed "is there anyone who could replace him?" she asked.

This didn't seem likely, because Zodrian had recommended Elias in the first place. There hadn't been many others that could have been the Captain in the first place after Zodrian had retired. Most of the Guards were still young; most of the experienced ones had retired because they felt they were well past their prime. Elias was among the youngest of her guard, being several years older than Elsa. Most of the older guards were in their mid to late thirties; they felt that a younger guard could last longer, rather than rotate one in every few years. They were mostly sentries, rather than part of the defense. They were the trainers, the advisors, but Elias was the leader.

Zodrian shook his head "we will have to see my Queen. He was the top candidate; at least of his age group." Zodrian said

Elsa frowned "I see." She said.

Elias couldn't remain as her guard, but that meant she would have to find someone that could replace him.

Elsa thanked Zodrian, Then walked out of the room. She was definitely not going to like having to deal with this

This was quite the dilemma. She needed a new guard captain, her personal guard was incapacitated, and she was angry over the events that had occurred today.

Elias was the most talented person on her guard capable of being captain. Zodrian said it himself he was one of the few candidate with enough skill to handle the position. His lieutenants were the only other people with skills close to his own.

She would have to review those lieutenants. She wouldn't have them fight, not after what had happened earlier today, but she would like to talk to them.

She walked towards her study. There was a lot lot of work to be done


	12. Love and War

**WARNING! Very Big WARNING! some of you will not like this chapter. You will see why. Sorry.**

* * *

Kristoff walked towards Anna's room a bouquet in hand. He had heard about Anna's ordeal from one of the castle staff. Apparently, one of Elsa's guards had been injured, and Anna felt terrible about it

He had picked it up and he wanted to make Anna feel special. He could just imagine that she would like it right about now.

He made his way to her door and knocked. There was no answer. He frowned. why wouldn't she be in her room?

He turned and left. Since there was no answer, it would be rude to enter her room (and Elsa would kill him)

Instead he returned to Sven, deciding to wait a little longer.

Olaf walked through the castle an ever present goofy grin on his face. he was making his way to his garden. Olaf loved to pick flowers these days, since they reminded him of summer, which was his favorite season.

he smiled happily bouncing his way through, there was nothing better than the summer flowers, except for summer itself.

as he walked, he noticed Kristoff walking through the garden. "kristoff!" he cried. The said reindeer lover, turned and noticed the snowman bouncing towards him

"olaf!" he cried "its been a while pall,. Olaf flung his little stick arms around the mountain man.

"I like warm hugs!" he cried. The two laughed, before Olaf let go,

"Hey Olaf, you wouldn't happen to know where Anna is would you?!"

Olaf grinned, "She was sleeping in her room, I think" Olaf said happily. Kristoff's eyes widened of course. She was asleep. He felt embarrassed. He was just glad he didn't wake her up.

"Well Olaf would you like to take a walk with me?"

Olaf grinned, "I likes walks."

Elsa sat in her study very upset. Her hands were in her hair and she was ready to simply up and rip it out of her skull. She was still upset over the events of earlier today and she wasn't sure who to blame over it. It was like her brain was scattered all over the place and she didn't know which way to go.

She did not want to blame Anna, for she had only brought Ranger here to be a part of the tryouts (which wasn't supposed to happen anyway) Zodrian, for raising a psycho without seeing his faults, or Elias himself, for thinking too much like he was some sort of god, but the fact of the matter was each one had a part to play in what had happened today. Then again so did she. She could have just ordered him out of the castle, but didn't because Anna wanted him to be there.

So here she was unsure of who to blame, and wondering why it even mattered to her. It wasn't like this was something that she wanted to happen. True enough it was a rather terrible situation, but it was barely worth the trouble that she was currently putting herself through.

She wasn't sure what to do;. Should she care for the young man who had been inured, or let him leave as soon as he was able? It didn't seem likely that he may want to stay, (though he needed to since he was her guard now)

Elsa didn't want to force him to stay if he was angry from this, but she would rather he stay, so she would feel better.

Wait what? She actually wanted him to stay with her. Elsa felt her face flush, almost mortified.

No bad Elsa, no falling in love with a man you just met!

It was bad enough that Anna wanted her to find a boyfriend, but now even her own conscious wanted her to find the first man she was attracted too!

Elsa was still young only twenty-one; there was no need to rush a marriage anytime soon.

Elsa sighed and placed a hand on the table. This was just too much for her. She needed something to help calm her down.

She stood up in a huff. Exiting the room, she walked down the hall and made her way down to the kitchen. There she found Gerda, making a plate of some food.

"Gerda?" Elsa asked softly. The elder woman glanced up, and she gave Elsa a smile "your majesty, I was just preparing our guest some food; it is likely that he will be hungry once he wakes up."

Elsa smiled at Gerda's thoughtfulness. She was a very kind woman. Elsa was very glad that she had Gerda in her life. She was like a mother to her and she couldn't be anymore grateful

However, something tugged inside Elsa. Her new guard might be scared upon walking up in an unfamiliar environment. Perhaps it would be better if she was the one who delivered his food.

"Gerda, I am acquainted with our guest; let me bring it up to him."

Gerda was surprised by her queens words. Elsa rarely ever did anything like this to other people. In her meetings, she never even provided food because it was far too much of a distraction (hard to talk when food is there)

However, since Elsa was the Queen, she didn't want to argue with her (she never did unless it was insane;)

Gerda placed the tray of food in Elsa's hands "be careful your majesty"

Elsa smiled at Gerda before making her way back up to the medical wing. It was not a long walk, though she was careful not to spill the food. she would hate to have to clean up the mess.

She opened the door to the room (which was now empty, for all the doctors had left) inside lay Ranger, who was…. Screaming?

Indeed, he was thrashing on the bed, having what looked like a rather vivid nightmare. He was yelling in pain. This was no ordinary nightmare

Elsa dropped the food in shock.

"no no!" he was yelling in agony "let me go!" he was thrashing in his sleep screaming as if being branded. "Mama papa! Don't let them take me!" he suddenly cried out.

Elsa ran to the bedside grabbing Ranger by the shoulders, desperately trying to shake him but her efforts were in vain. He just kept screaming.

"nooooooo!" he yelled, before suddenly waking up with a gasp. His eyes opened and he noticed Elsa. His look twisted to anger. With a roar, he lunged at Elsa grabbing her neck and squeezing it. Elsa's hands went to her throat. His grip was like a vice and she could she dark spots. She tried to break free, but he was to strong.

Ranger was staring at her like an animal. Elsa felt her heartbeat quicken. He was going to kill her without a second thought, willingly. Elsa tried to focus on her powers, her hands glowed briefly, but then faded; she couldn't concentrate because she was losing too much oxygen.

Suddenly he let go, gasping with shock. Elsa collapsed to her knees, gasping for air.. she glared at Ranger, who was looking at her strangely. He gave her a look of shock, before looking away and breathed heavily.

Elsa massaged her sore throat, trying hard not to slap the injured young man for his act. She could not believe that he would just up and attack her like that upon waking up like that. What could have happened that would case him to just do something?

She opened her mouth to speak, but he turned to look at her. His eyes were cold. "What happened?"

His tone was tense and any warmth from it was long gone. "You had a nightmare." Elsa told him truthfully.

Ranger growled, before attempting to stand up. He didn't make it very far, because of his injury. He fell back onto the bed, clutching his chest. "That…" he groaned. Elsa was by his side in an instant. She placed a hand on his chest, wincing as she realized it must hurt.

Listen!" she hissed. "your hurt, and moving is only going to make it worse! You need time to heal!"

Ranger glared at her, clearly not liking the idea of being stuck in bed, let alone in an unfamiliar place.

He was just like Anna…

Elsa cleared her throat. "I will get the doctor for you." She turned and left.

Meanwhile, Anna awoke from her nap. She blinked, remembering what had happened. she groaned and sat up. Ranger. It was her fault that he was injured. She had brought him to the castle, hoping to (secretly) get Elsa a boyfriend, but that little plan had obviously failed miserably, since he was injured. Anna felt a tear exit her eye. She needed to see him. She exited the room and made her way out into the hallway, but failed to notice her boyfriend, resulting in her colliding with him. she squealed as she fell backward, but a hand reached out and grabbed her, preventing her from falling onto the floor.

She looked up and saw Kristoff staring down at her. He smiled "glad your awake!"

"Kristoff…" Anna breathed. He hoisted her up right and kissed her cheek (he never kissed her lips unless they were alone, because Elsa) Anna giggled.

"And how's my royal ice master and deliverer?" she cooed.

Kristoff smiled, "Just fine, feistypants." He said, before taking Anna's hand and leading her down the hall.

Ann laughed to herself as she allowed her love dragged her to the royal gardens. Anna knew that the gardens were among the most beautiful spots in the castle; she had spent many hours in the garden as a child. Currently it was Olaf's favorite spot in the castle because it reminded him of summer.

The two entered the gardens and kristoff led Anna to the center of it, where they found Olaf smelling some flowers. He looked up and spotted the lovely couple "Anna!" he said bouncing up to her with a grin on his face. He wrapped his arms around Anna's legs,

"hi Olaf!" Anna said smiling back at the little snowman.

"Kristoff and I were here all morning and we were…." Olaf smacked his mouth, realizing he said too much.

Anna stared back at Kristoff. "you were here?" she asked him

Kristoff blushed. "I heard about your… morning." Anna's eyes widened and her face fell. She stared at the ground, feeling fresh tears trying to burst free from within.

Kristoff noticed. "So I just wanted to make you feel better" he said.

Anna smiled, and then kissed him. "thank you" she said.

Kristoff smiled. He was always happy to make Anna feel better. He took her closer to the center and showed her what he and Olaf were doing.

Anna gasped as she saw the flowers. They were in a pattern that spelled 'I love you Anna'. Anna felt herself choke and she flung herself at Kristoff, kissing him hard on his lips.

Kristoff kissed back almost immediately, their lips moving in tandem with one another.

It was a moment of pure bliss and it felt so right. The two hardly ever kissed like this (because of Elsa) but they enjoyed whenever they did.

They pulled back, grinning. "wow" Kristoff said.

Meanwhile, Elsa was walking through the halls. All her affairs were in order, so she now had some free time to spend doing something. Perhaps Anna and Olaf were available for something (Kristoff was no doubt with Anna, if she wasn't still sleeping so Olaf was more probable) However she was also very confused. She rubbed her still sore neck, sure that some of it was still blue. She had never been strangled and sincerely hoped that it would never happen again. that left on other problem

What had happened. Ranger went from having a nightmare to full fledge attacking her. It took him a few moments to even realize what he had been doing. The question though was why? He always seemed so calm, confident.

Elsa bit her lip. If his nightmares had always been that vivid, she wasn't sure that she should pry into it.

Instead, she made her way back to Anna's room to check if she was still sleeping.

She knocked on the door, but there was no response from inside. Elsa opened the door and indeed saw that it was empty. Anna must have woken up not long after Elsa had put her to bed. She closed the door and started to walk away. There weren't many places for Anna to be, despite the vastness of the castle. Elsa could always find her.

Elsa made her way to the kitchens. Anna could always be found there searching for chocolates. However it was far past dessert hour for the chefs, so it was likely Anna hadn't even been to the kitchens today. That left very few places for Anna to be.

What she did find however was Gerda, who looked surprised. Elsa womdered why, but then realized that she had forgotten the tray that she had used to deliver the food earlier.

"Your majesty, are you alright? Your neck…." Elsa's hands flew up to her neck. She couldn't tell Gerda. It would not be pretty if she revealed that she was attacked no matter what had happened

"Its nothing Gerda…" she said quickly "just tired I guess"

It was a terrible lie (not that she was good at it) but Gerda dropped the matter thankfully.

Elsa then turned around, rubbing her neck; perhaps she should deal with that before taking any more walks. She didn't want to have to answer any questions about what had happened.

She made her way to her own personal quarters. She quickly opened the door and shut it, making her way to her own in suite washroom. She raised her hand and made a wet towel from ice, rubbing her neck furiously, trying to get rid of the blue bruises that had taken form. Man that guy sure had a very tight grip.

Just what had he been thinking?

Elsa was right in thinking that she shouldn't pry into another's personal life, but she at least needed an answer on why she had ended up being strangled.

Elsa groaned and through the towl on the floor, what was with her? But she couldn't fall in love! She disn't know him! where he was from, his family his interests. There was absolutely nothing that she could talk to him about!

He was also so infuriating, with that constant smirk, his sarcasm and his lack of respect!

Oh Elsa what have you done?! She screamed in frustration throwing her hands up in the air.

How was she going to be able to concentrate f she was like this? it wasn't going to work.

She exited her room. she really needed to find some sort of chocolate after all of this.

Anna and Krisatoff laughed as they sat in the garden. They had been sitting there having a great time.

When they first started their relationship, Anna wasn't sure what to think. Kristoff was her first boyfriend (not counting her brief time with Hans) she was so worried because of that, but as it turned out there was really nothing to worry about. Kristoff was a kind, if not strange man (she wondered about that but she loved him still)

He never treated her poorly (again unlike Hans)

Anna was a hopeless romantic when she was younger (hence why she was with Hans in the first place; she was convinced that it was true love) but she knew better now, thanks to her experiences. Even so she wanted top be with Kristoff as long as they were able to be together. The two rarely ever fought (the first time being over his duties and being with Sven more than her) but then again that's what every couple did right?

Still Anna couldn't ask for a better boyfriend (not that she was looking for another of course). Whether or not Marriage was in their future was also another question. Elsa wanted Kristoff to get to know Anna first and wait for some time, before even considering blessing a marriage.

Anna couldn't blame her; Elsa wanted to make sure everything was perfect before it was all said and done. Anna had to agree that would probably be the best course of action that would benefit the three of them. Elsa was hoping the same thing of course.

Anna had to wonder, what would happen if she did go off and marry Kristoff. one of the biggest problems that the council had with Kristoff was the obvious truth that he was a commoner; he couldn't give Anna anything special.

Of course, Anna disagreed. Kristoff could give her love and affection, something that everyone wanted. She didn't want money of the title of queen.

Anna smiled. That was all she ever needed. Her family. Of course when the wedding happened (if it did indeed happen) it would be small. It would be a grand celebration of course, with the whole kingdom involved, but the wedding was to be far more personal

Elsa would be happy for her right? Of course she would; they were family. Still Anna was again in absolutely no rush for that she wanted to take her time with Kristoff (or Elsa would kill him). she laughed. Kristoff was always careful with Anna whenever Elsa was around (he feared her sister more than he feared the wrath of the queen) and Anna always enjoyed those moments.

Kristoff was more than just any person to Anna. he was her true love and she was his. They loved each other very much and there was absolutely noting that could stop tem from being together. Anna smiled at Kristoff and pecked his cheek once again. the blond haired ice master chuckled "your never going to get tired of that are you?" he asked her

Anna laughed "nope! She said, so you better get used to it" she said before kissing him once again.

The two just sat there lost in their own little world. t was just the most perfect thing.

It was all they ever needed. Their love and their family.

* * *

**If i may, I have a little problem. As some of you may know, I outlined this story months ago before posting it. while I have the entire plot in my head, there is one little thing that i would love your help on. i am not sure how Elsa and my Character should truly fall in love. Elsa is clearly attracted to him, but its not yet mutual.**

**so yeah its a blank slate. there will be a point where they reveal their feelings of course (which will lead to one of the major problems), but i do not want to skip to that point until i write a few more chapters.**

**I want something like Han and Leia from star wars, (the dynamic of their relationship) so please leave some ideas down and i might be able to use them**


	13. Time to Enjoy

**Please enjoy yourselves. i love this story and i know you do to**

* * *

After being checked up by her royal doctor, Elsa concluded that Ranger was the most stubborn sarcastic jerk to ever come to her castle. He would constantly fight with them, almost went into a rage at the sight of Elsa's doctor, and it took Elsa a while just to convince him to calm down.

Then why was she so enamored with him? they barely knew one another; all he ever managed to do in the short time was argue, scream, and he had the nerve to hug and flirt with her! (though the hugging was nice) Elsa couldn't believe that with all the potential suitors that could so up in her life, she had to fall for someone like him.

Elsa had always believed in not marrying a man you just met, if Anna was of any indication. True, she wasn't ready to just up and marry the guy like that, but she found her self smiling at the idea anyway.

Elsa gasped, her cheeks going red. No! bad Elsa! No! falling in love is bad!

Dramatic to be sure, but Elsa found herself constantly thinking like this over the past few hours, ever since Ranger woke up (though he was now snoring because they knocked him unconscious once again.)

Anna would die laughing if she ever found out about what Elsa was thinking. Anna had been saying that Elsa should find a boyfriend, but naturally, because Elsa did not want to just up and give Arendelle a king, her response could be summed up as "not today!"

Even if Elsa wanted such a thing she was still just too young. She could wait a few years, build up her experiences as Queen. By adding in marriage, it would just complicate things more than she would like to do at the moment.

If Anna wanted to get married and have kids, Elsa would be fine with that, so long as Anna wait a few years. she was only 18, there really wasn't any need for her to up and do such things right now.

Plus Elsa would kill kristoff if they did.

So, yeah Elsa found herself quite in the position.

She couldn't understand why she was feeling so love struck. She had spent her entire life in closed rooms, not wanting to risk hurting others. But now she could only wonder what the strange mans lips tasted like….

Elsa's face exploded with heat. Just where did that come from? She felt like she was becoming, well a giggling love struck… woman (she was 21, so yes a woman)

She shook her head annoyed. She was the queen of Arendelle she would not succumb to the woes of attraction. She had to be smarter than that. running head first into love like that (or whatever she was feeling would not be a very good move) and she did not want to do that.

Anna… maybe she could talk to Anna about this? or perhaps Gerda. Anna had experience with love (but not much considering her young age), but Gerda wouldn't go into a happy dance if Elsa tried talking to her about it.

Then again, how would people react when they learn that Elsa had feelings for the man who was to be her personal guard? They would see her as incompetent and start asking questions. Questions that Elsa would rather not try to answer.

No it was better to try and keep it as secret. Rumors were not something that Elsa needed to deal with, so no. better to be silent.

But how was she to keep her silence when he would constantly be around her? If she didn't get a hold of herself, well, she hoped that it wouldn't be too noticeable. As long as nobody knew what she was thinking.

Anna was one of the very few people that could easily read Elsa (though this was because of the long years in isolation) but then again, Elsa didn't want that.

She sighed and rubbed her temples. She needed a break. She got up and left the room, deciding that it would be best to get something to eat .

meanwhile, Anna and Kristoff were still cuddling on the bench. Anna was indeed happy. She just allowed Kristoff to hold her basking I the crisp autumn air.

She sighed contently and snuggled closer to Kristoff. how she wished she could bask in this moment forever.

Of course though, Elsa wouldn't allow that because, well of course she was just looking out for her. Not that Anna minded this of course. Kristoff may be her botfriend but Elsa was her sister. Elsa loved her dearly, and she would always be there. Even if that meant protecting Anna from Kristoff.

Elsa didn't hate Kristoff of course; Anna just knew that she was wary of him. she trusted him of course, and came to love him like a brother, she just didn't want to have to worry too much about other things in a relationship.

Anna giggled. Elsa was worried that she and Krisoff would get ahead of themselves. They were careful of course and hadn't gone past kissing. But Anna knew that it would not bode well if there was any sort of slip up.

The only thing that would make it worse was if Elsa had some secret relationship.

Anna could have laughed at that. Elsa in a relationship. Elsa disliked it when Anna tried to bring up boyfriends in any shape or from (when she wasn't talking about her relationship with Kristoff of course)

While Elsa shared some of Anna's traits (including marriage for love) she was far more level headed about it. she wouldn't be so crazy as to up and fall for the first guy she met right?

No Elsa would take much more time to get to know him and decide if she wanted to marry the person she believed to be her soul mate.

But then again, that might take a long time (though Anna had to admit, that would probably work out better for Elsa anyway)

But when Elsa was ready for love and marriage, Anna would always be there for her.

Anna smiled. She could see it now, a large extravagant wedding service, Elsa in a beautiful snow white dress, holding on to a bouquet, walking down the isle of a chapel.

It would be a beautiful sight indeed.

Anna wanted to have something similar to that, it was just more fun thinking of Elsa's wedding since she was the queen. While Anna's wedding may be important in the sense the princess was getting married, Elsa's would be far more important because she was the queen.

But all of that would happen in time; Anna couldn't marry Kristoff yet, and Elsa didn't yet want to even try as of yet.

Anna snuggled closer into Kristoff holding on to him tightly.

Elsa walked into the castle bakery, being the queen, she could ask for almost anything that she wanted; but she never tried to over exert her staff. Anna would come in most days all but screaming for an entire chocolate cake when they didn't even have the supplies to make it (nor was it an appropriate time).

Anna was never rude or spiteful to the staff; far from it. she could just be a little excited tis all. Of course this never stopped them from freaking out whenever Anna or even worse, Elsa ended up on some sort of sugar rush, which was all but impossible to handle

Kai and Gerda really must have had their handful when it came to containing the two of them; at least prior to the accident that had occurred so many years ago.

Elsa had long since forgiven herself for the way things had happened after the accident. She just wished it hadn't that way.

But now, almost four months after the great thaw that had the entire kingdom shivering, the two sisters couldn't be any closer than they were right now.

Elsa loved Anna very much. Seeing her happy made Elsa happy and she hoped Anna would continue being like that till the very end.

She made her way to the chocolate stand, where she quickly grabbed a few pieces of freshly baked chocolate and walked out deciding the head to the Gardens. She could take a little bit of a break she supposed. After the past few days she could use it.

The Gardens were among one of her favorite spots to be in the castle. It provided the perfect spot to practice her powers (if no one was around of course; she didn't want to disturb anyone relaxing there) and they were beautiful asides. She loved the gardens and would gladly visit them everyday if she wasn't as busy as she was

But that was why the gardens enchanted her so. They were very beautiful and she couldn't help but admire that. it was just too much fun too.

She nibbled on a piece of chocolate relishing in the smooth creamy taste that it had. She loved this little dessert almost more than anything else in the world.

Almost.

As she walked she caught sight of a very strange mass on the bench nearby. It was a… her eye widened and she realized that it was Kristoff and Anna kissing. Frowning she raised a hand and fired a snowball at them.

The two leaped off the bench screaming from the cold sensation. They looked u and the color drained from their faces

"Elsa" "your majesty" the two said.

Said Queen shook her head "no kissing…" she sad walking off. She grinned to herself.

It was so good being queen.

She made her way down to another part of the gardens; to a spot only she knew about. It was filled with a dozen bouquet of ice blue flowers that she had made. It was a place for her to think and relax; to get away from the pressures and stress of being the queen for a while.

She sat down and continued to nibble on a piece of chocolate.

Life was just too good right now and Elsa was enjoying every single minute of it.

Being the Queen was very tough, but Elsa managed it as best she could. She was raised to be the queen so there was not much that she could complain about (though she despised paperwork; it was her least favorite thing to do, no contest about that at all.

But other than that she loved being Queen and was certain that Anna would not be able to function as Queen. Anna was a free spirit; she could barely focus on one thing without boredom setting in and falling asleep (which explained her unorthodox methods as a princess) but Elsa loved Anna all the same. There was nothing better she could ask for.

She nibbled on another piece of chocolate . he was lucky that Anna didn't spot the chocolate; she would have gone insane if she had. But thankfully Elsa was able to hide things Anna much easier than Anna could hide things from her.

She sighed and after finishing her last piece of chocolate stared at the sky, absorbing the rich blue color. They sky had always been her favorite thing to look at. It felt so serene and she always felt cam whenever looking at it.

She didn't know what about it she liked, but that's just how she felt whenever she was in this situation. She leaded back and took in the sky, watching as the clouds rolled by, without a care in the world. Elsa smiled and continued to just lie there, content.

She rarely ever got to do something like this; she was always working. She just smiled and closed her eyes, feeling herself relax into sleep. A quick little nap would not be so bad would it?

Olaf happily walked through the Gardens one of his favorite things to do before winter set in. though he was a snowman his favorite season was summer. He just couldn't help but enjoy the hot weather, even though he would melt if it wasn't for the flurry that constantly kept him at non melting temperature.

As he walked through the gardens he caught sight of the lovely older maid, Gerda. Gerda was quite the nice lady if Olaf could say so. She always talked to him and always enjoyed his hugs. She was like a nice old aunt.

He bounced up to her a smile on his face. Gerda smiled down at the tiny snowman "oh. Olaf, could you tell me where Elsa is?"

Olaf smiled and pointed his stick in the right direction "she went somewhere that way."

Gerda smiled and patted Olaf's head. "than you my dear little friend she said as she went into that direction

Elsa had a meeting very soon and she didn't want to have the young Queen miss it. she just had too much to do and in so little time.

Elsa just continued to nap completely unaware of her surroundings. She must have been very tired when she entered the gardens and honestly, who could blame her. Being the Queen was a very tough job and it was very demanding on even the best of days.

That was why such naps that she had were just a blessing; she would work her self so hard sometimes, she would just forget the necessities like food and sleep. But sometimes being Queen meant that you would have to forgo some of the pleasantries and make sure that everything that needed to be done was indeed done before you took care of yourself.

Anna and Kristoff watched as Gerda went deeper into the Gardens. Knowing her old Guardians like she did, Anna figured that Elsa had some sort of Queenly work to do. Anna giggled. Poor Elsa; all she wanted was to have a little quiet time, but even that was going to end up being a little too much for the moment. Of course, Elsa was never one to complain, she just did what she did best. That was what made her a very good queen. She didn't care about her self; she cared about what was best for Arendelle. The people loved her for that.

Anna couldn't help but smile. Arendelle needed a queen like Elsa to guide the kingdom. She couldn't do it; at least not in the way that Elsa could do it. Elsa was very good at it and she hadn't even been Queen for more than a few months. Elsa didn't go through any life changing moments as a Queen just yet, but she would certainly be able to handle it far better than Anna could. That was a given all together.

Anna just didn't want Elsa to work too hard; being Queen was daunting enough, but it would be down right impossible to work when you were all tired out.

Anna then just giggled. Kristoff stared at her. Anna was a crazy one indeed but he still loved her. There was absolutely nothing he could say to her that would be rude (he was scared that she would punch him if he did).

He honestly didn't know how he and Ann had ever even ended up together, despite the adventure they had, but he was grateful. He was glad that he found someone to be with, even if it wasn't what he had expected,

Sven had been his constant companion growing up, even with the trolls being his adopted family. But Anna she was something different. She was a princess but didn't mind it at all.

Kristoff chuckled and held Anna close.

Elsa fidgeted in her sleep, feeling quite restless. Her face was contorted with an unsettling feeling. It was something she had never felt before. she had felt scared of her powers growing up, but it felt nothing like this. it felt like a premonition. She felt hot and started to sweat. She wasn't having a nightmare… at least not yet.

Elsa was not one to have any sort of violent outburst with her powers, but right now her powers were swirling around her. she felt threated , even though there was no one to harm her.

Gerda managed to navigate her way through the maze of flowers and ferns that made the royal garden. It was very easy especially when you were the one who made the maze yourself. She knew Elsa had always enjoyed it here.

Gerda smiled. The Queen was quite the fine young woman. if she wasn't always busy with working and making sure that Arendelle was running the way it was supposed to, Gerda was sure that she would be happily married by now.

Of course, Gerda knew that such things were not as important. It would just be nice to have more children running around the royal castle for once. It had not happened in such a long time.

She finally made her way to Elsa who was lying on a bench.

Elsa suddenly sat up abruptly, trying not to scream. She was sweating and panting and couldn't even believe what had just happened. she tried taking in several deep breaths to calm her racing heartbeat. She gulped. Why, just… why? She rarely ever had nightmare, even as a child, but this… it was horrible.

After what seemed like minutes, Elsa felt her heartbeat settle and her powers ceased. She shakily stood up, running a hand through her braid. Looking around he spotted Gerda, who was looking at her with the deepest concern

"your majesty, are you alright?" she asked

Elsa felt herself blush, realizing that Gerda must have seen at least some of her outburst. It was rather embarrassing, but she had been asleep, so there was no way for either of them to be able to complain.

The young Queen simply waved her hand "I'm ok Gerda," she told her maid faking a smile." Without another word, she left for her study.

* * *

**Again please leave a review. tell me what you like, leave ideas for romance or anything else you might like to see.**

**on that note thank you TPFR for always leaving a review**


	14. Awkward

**Some past events are hidden in this chapter for a certain character see if you can figure it out.**

* * *

Ranger felt something cold ghost against his lips. Like a cool breeze, but something more. Hands were cupping his face, and before he knew it, lips were pressed against his with a burning passion.

His eyes opened, but when he registered where he was, there was no one there. He was back in the room that he had been in for maybe the past few hours. He sat up briefly wondering how long he had been out, but before he could think on it, his chest screamed with pain. He grunted as said pain shot up and down his chest, forcing him to lie back down a moment.

He gingerly rubbed the gauze that covered the wound. His opponent, whoever he was, had really managed to cut deep into his chest. Huh, here he was supposed to guard the Queen (according to that man Kai) but here he was lying in some hospital room, unable to even move without aggravating a very deep cut.

He groaned as he sat up again. there was no way he was going to get cooped up in this room just because of a little pain.

He slowly stood up, hissing as his chest argued with him. when he finally did manage to stand, he walked towards the door and left the room. he entered the hallway and took off.

This castle… it was quite… extravagant. He marveled at the craftsmanship of the walls, and the columns and the paintings that were scattered around the halls.

Clearly the monarchs took very good care of the place. Or maybe the servants. Whoever did the work clearly knew what they were doing

Ranger snorted. What a life these people must have. He wondered if any of the people in this whole town knew what it was like to suffer, to be truly afraid of waking up on day wondering if things would become better.

Given how happy Arendelle was, he could assume the answer was no.

He turned down the hall, simply wandering in any direction he felt like it. he had absolutely no idea where he was going. this castle was completely new to him.

He just continued walking, hoping to be able to find someone, or maybe at least get outside. But considering that the castle he was in was probably as large as it could get, it didn't seem likely that he would be able to find his way out as soon as he would have wanted to.

He couldn't stay in that room though; he felt ok, minus the twinge of pain, so why waste his time stuck in that room.

He finally found a door that looked like it headed outside. Upon opening it, he found to his dismay a large ball room instead. Groaning, he walked across the room and found a very large window and he looked outside. To his surprise he found himself overlooking the courtyard that he walked in upon first arriving at the castle with Kai.

Ok now he just had to find a way to get down there.

Ranger exited the room, hoping that it wouldn't take him that long.

Because that wasn't wishful thinking at all….

* * *

Elsa walked back into her castle, ready to return to her study fir a few more hours. The sun was already setting; it must be late in the afternoon.

Between the guard selection process, having to send Ranger to the hospital, and being in her study for most of the day, she honestly felt surprised about the fact that it was already nearing the end of the day.

There had been so much excitement and surprise in the day.

She hoped that there weren't going to be any sort of repeats. there was no need for such things to happen again. at least with Elias in the dungeon, she might be able to restore some order with a new guard captain.

She would leave the process however to Zodrian; he was far more experienced I the matter than she was, so it would be best if he did that.

As long as he didn't choose some crazy power hungry maniac. If Elias had been chosen as her personal guard, Elsa would have been sure that she would have disliked that

But she would settle on that matter much later. There were still some documents to be signed before the end of the night and she needed to get started on them right away.

Thankfully, she didn't have many left, but she did need them done for her next council meeting in the morning.. ugh council meetings the absolute worst thing she had to deal with politicians could be so uptight about there demands squeezing everythin that they could out of Arendelle

Elsa always did try to mediate the best out of her meetings; she didn't want to keep everything for herself, because she needed to send out goods in order to receive goods she needed for her kingdom, but nor did she want to allow everything to be taken away.

In short it was very difficult to work with people that wanted to take everything from you.

Elsa never had anything to prove to anyone; she was Queen for a short time and despite how people felt about her powers, she did her best with what she had. She didn't want to come across as a cold heartless Queen.

Elsa jut wanted the best for her Kingdom. Her father and her ancestors strived hard to ensure the best for her Kingdom, but for the best course of action the worked for the citizens that lived in Arendelle, not themselves

That's what she wanted to be, nothing more nothing less. The best Queen that she could be. While she did have her advisors, it was up to her to run the Kingdom in the direction that she felt was best for the good of everyone.

She entered her study, ready to begin the last bit of work that she needed before getting a peaceful sleep that she felt that she deserved

* * *

Anna happily watched the sky with Kristoff. they had been outside all day, and they were just having a wonderful time talking and hanging out. Alas they were both getting tired. It had been a long day and unfortunately Anna was ready to just end up falling asleep. Kristoff on the other hand, had work to do in the morning. An Ice masters job was never done.

Anna turned to Kristoff, giving him a grin "so, mister ice master, have you had a fun time tonight?" she asked, giving him a playful grin.

Kristoff smiled back "why of course feisty pants, I did" he said pecking her lips. He then sat up and picked up the exhausted princess in his arms. "but I have to get back to work, and you look like you need some sleep" Anna squealed surprised by the actions Kristoff had surprisingly taken. He usually wasn't like this. in fact the only other time he had ever done something like this was when she had her heart frozen and she was on svens back while they rode back to the castle.

Anna giggled, sure than hadn't been the best time in her life, but riding on Sven had been fun and Kristoff carrying her was so romantic it just made her heart swell with love and joy.

She wrapped her arms around Kristoffs neck as he carried her back to her room. she snuggled into his chest, enjoying the warmth he provided. oh how she could just stay in this position forever, if it wasn't for the fact that she would really rather have a bed to sleep in because she was exhausted

It honestly surprised her that Kristoff was as gentle as he was sometimes. Being an ice harvester required some strength because you had to break the ice (she giggled)

Kristoff entered the castle wand walked all the way up to Anna's room, before placing her (aka throwing her across the room) and leaving, leaving Anna to get ready for bed.

Anna however, just fell asleep the moment she hit the bed. Boy she was really exhausted.

Elsa entered her study, but was shocked by what she found. Kai was sitting at her desk, writing on what looked to be the last document that she had been going to work on.

If she hadn't been so shocked that she found Kai ant her desk, Elsa was sure that she would have been angry with him. she absolutely hated it when others did her work for her. She was perfectly capable of doing her own work by herself. But she supposed she couldn't be angry with Kai. He was probably just looking out for her. But she still needed to find out exactly what was going on through his mind.

She cleared her throat gaining her old friends attention. None to her surprise, he did not look ashamed at all. Instead she could see the small spark of childlike mischief in his eyes.

"your majesty" he said clearly amused by Elsa's reaction to the whole situation "I was just finishing the last of your documents for you. It has been a long day, and I believe that you needed a break after this mornings terrible accident."

Elsa couldn't blame Kai's logic for this; she had been going a little crazy since the fiasco, which had not helped her in the slightest. So perhaps what her friend did was a service to her. But that didn't mean she had to like it. still she was unable to get mad at him because it was very thoughtful.

She gave Kai a smile, before waving her hand "thank you Kai. Please get some sleep. It is getting late and I would hate for you to be up all night."

Kai gave Elsa a warm smile, and without another word, left the study. Elsa shut the door, and sighed. She didn't know what she would do without Kai or Gerda. She loved them very much.

Smiling she made her way back to her room, or she would have if while almost there, she didn't bump into something.

* * *

Ranger groaned with annoyance. This castle, he decided was a complete maze! He had tried to find his way out but he was sure all he managed to do was walk around in circles (or something like that considering that the castle wasn't a circle)

Oh how he missed the simple days, where all he managed to do when getting lost was getting lost in the wildness or some forest that he had the luxury of being in. kind of felt less stressful then getting lost in a glorified house that wasn't even that large to begin with (at least when compared to the other places he had been lost in)! he was so angry, but this was just embarrassing. He might have admired the castle in all of its beauty, but now he just wanted to tear it down!

He was sure that he had managed to walk down the exact same hallway more than a few times already, because the same painting had been laughing at him for the past few turns (either that or there were multiple copies laughing at him)

Even worse, if anyone had been looking for him, it was a wonder how no one managed to find him. maybe they were just laughing at him to!

But he assumed that they didn't know or didn't care. Then again, considering that he was supposed to be Elsa's guard he could assume that they just didn't know.

Because why would anyone care about him? its not like anyone had ever cared for him before now

If they did, he was usually gone before the feeling became mutual

That was his life. It had always been like that.

But now, he was being forced to stay here for who knew how long, serving a queen that probably hated his guts (which made him wonder why she didn't just kick him out)

Elsa flashed through his mind. Her face, her pale skin, her eyes. Her beauty was ethereal.

His face colored slightly. She was beautiful, he had to admit that, but considering the fact that every time they talked, it turned into some sort of argument, it was more than likely that she would kill him long before she decided to like him!

Besides there was nothing that could be done about that anyway. she was a queen. She would go on to marry a prince, a king a lord, what ever possessed the power to sway her and marry her. He was nothing… less than nothing. He couldn't bear the thought of hurting another, or worse… not again, never again…

He grimaced. It didn't matter. Nothing mattered except making sure that he lived to see the light of another day. Every day he had was a gift. A cursed gift, but a gift none the less.

He was alive…

He turned down another hallway, ready to just sit down and fall asleep. The sun had already set past the horizon and after the day he had, he was just ready to sleep some more until morning. sure he had napped during most of the day, but that was more forced than restful.

However as he turned, he bumped into someone, causing them both to stumbled. However, or maybe thankfully, he tripped backwards, falling to the ground, while the other person fell on top of his chest. The wind got knocked out of him, not to mention the mass did nothing to ease the shooting pain in his chest. He felt a pair of lips ghost against his and for a moment, he remembered his dream from before.

However he now had the problem of who had run into him and worse who was kissing him (was it kissing?).

Judging by the small frame and the cleavage that was pressed against his chest, he could tell that it was a woman. he glanced at the womans face. he met shocked ice blue eyes.

His green yes widened and he stiffened, Oh… not good. He was lying on the floor, bare chested (minus the gauze) with the queen of Arendelle splayed out on top of him, with there lips meeting in what could be called a kiss.

Was it possible the world was just out to get him today? he heard Elsa squeak into the kiss and pushed off of him, stumbling back a few steps, before tripping once again and landing on her butt.

Both of them breathed heavily and dare not say a word. Ranger could not believe it. this was an odd predicament to say the least. But he had absolutely no idea how he was going to talk his way out of this one.

Elsa brought a trembling hand to her lips, not daring to meet Rangers eyes.

She had her first kiss. It was short and a mistake, but there was no denying it. she scowled and pointed a finger "how dare you…" she growled at him

Ranger gasped. "what" he said "your blaming me!" he cried before scowling right back at her "you ran into me!"

Elsa stood up her hands glowing blue. She was upset, maybe for the wrong reasons, but how else was she supposed to react at a time like this

Ranger got up as well, laughing "oh please your worship, we both know you won't attack me. Your too kind for that."

Elsa stiffened. He was right. there was absolutely no reason to attack him

"and its not like you didn't enjoy that"

Elsa growled. She was not going to rise to that bait. She turned and walked off ready to just retire to her chambers, but Ranger caught up with her grabbing her by her shoulder

Elsa shrugged off the hand "get away from me" she ordered him

But Ranger just laughed "sorry princess, but I don't exactly know where I'm going. would you be so kind as to escort me to some guest quarters." He asked with a teasing grin.

Elsa turned to face him, hoping that he would just drop dead. unfortunately he was right. it was unlikely that Kai had escorted him through the castle when they first arrived, and having been unconscious for most of the day, Ranger never had the time to get a full tour of the castle that he was now (regretfully) going to stay in.

She turned and began walking away leading Ranger towards the guest room that he had been staying in after his unfortunate accident.

She opened the door and he walked in. before she could close it , he said "goodnight my princess"

Elsa cheeks blazed. And she slammed the door shut, all but stomping back to her bedroom, where she then slammed the door shut once again and flopped onto her bed screaming into the pillow for possibly the longest time that she could have ever managed.

Elias may have been a complete psycho, but Ranger… he was just so… so. She wasn't sure if she should be outraged that he was infuriating, or grateful that he could was at least a very proud, but not selfish human being

It made her head spin, and boy she was getting more confused by the minute. She was the Queen of Arendelle. She could be sure about anything. But now here she was wondering just what to do about the enigma that was Ranger, her new personal guard

She traced her lips. It had been her very first kiss. She wasn't sure what to think of that. she had never been particularly a romantic like Anna was, but this was just something very new to her. Just how was she going to be able to deal with it?

She groaned and got under the covers of her bed. It was just…

She fell asleep almost instantly.

* * *

**Hope you enjoy that little presentation because there won't be anything like that for a while. Elsa is one stubborn woman. Love, who needs it. its just business with her right now.**

**leave a review, because some mysteries will soon be revealed. and trust me, its going to be…. well.. you'll see. **


	15. Love

**time for a small amount or romance. not much but you'll see **

* * *

Elsa awoke to a loud pounding that resonated into her room. someone was knocking on her chamber doors. There could only be one reason for that. she had somehow managed to sleep in.

That would explain why she felt so rested. She glanced out her window and saw that the sun, which was usually low on the horizon ablaze with a dim yellow alighting the sky a pink hue, was now very high in the sky, shining down a bright yellow surrounded by a brilliant blue.

Elsa's eyes widened and memories of the previous night washed over her. Darn it. she blamed Ranger for this. she was going to kill him if she got the chance. Or she would if it wouldn't turn out to be a very bad idea for the Queen to commit such a heinous act. Darn the law!

"Queen Elsa?" Gerda's voice sounded urgent "I think it is time for you to wake up now madam."

Elsa sat up and groaned. She did not want to go anywhere right now. Not because she found it a nuisance, but because she had just woken up! Just how had she managed to sleep anyway? she was usually so careful with that that she couldn't believe that she had sonwhow managed to sleep in. work was just to important to her.

Unfortunately, it just couldn't be helped. The Queens job was never easy.

Still that left her with the problem of finding out who had exactly told Gerda not to wake her up until…. She glanced out the window. It must be very late in the day, but there was no way Gerda would call for her just before anything important; she was far to careful. That meant that there was at least some time before anything that she needed to do

She slipped out of her bed calling Gerda "I just need to get ready Gerda!" she called to her old maid.

Gerda walked in with what looked like sone sort of breakfast. She had a slight grin on her face and a twinkle of mischief in her eye "you look quite well rested your majesty" she said, placing Elsa's food on her bedside table

Ela shook her head "I guess". She really wasn't in the mood to get into a conversation with Gerda over it.

"when Ranger told me he found you sprawled on your desk, I couldn't help but agree more; you needed your rest. You work yourself far to hard your majesty." She said with an air of innocence in her voice

Elsa felt her blood run cold, before her eyes darkened and her veins decided to expand from the utter rage that was building deep in her core. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Ranger, her Guard told Gerda that she had ordered her entire staff not to wake her up because

She glare at Gerda, trying not to lose her already slipping temper. What was it about Ranger that absolutely infuriated her? Ever since they met he had been nothing but a sarcastic wise talking flirtatious, well… man!

Were men always this infuriating. Well Kristoff certainly didn't seem to be; he and Anna hadn't yet fought in their relationship, so he must be the nicest guy out there. At least as far as Anna had known.

But Ranger? There was absolutely nothing redeemable about him. Elsa just wanted to smack his face

Just who did he think he was? She stood up, and walked to her closet shutting the door behind her. She peeled off her nightgown, before slipping on her ice dress that she kept in there.

Ice dress meant business these days, and not the "we need to talk" business.

She stomped out of her closet. Gerda noticed that she was upset and waved her hand "he is out in the forge milady"

The forge. Right. anna had mentioned that he was a blacksmith. He must have gone there because it felt familiar to him. well at least she knew where to find him. she made her way down to the guard training area which would give her a quick and easy access way down to the castle forge

She slammed the door opened, seething with rage, but just as quickly started to blush as she realized what exactly she was staring at.

Ranger, it seemed had felt it fit to remove the gauze around his body, revealing a tightly muscled masculine body that Elsa had to admit looked quite nice. He was practicing his sword play, paying absolutely no mind to the eves dropping queen that was now so noticeably checking him out.

Elsa face was growing redder by the minute, unable to take her eyes off of her Guards ripping muscles. He was nowhere near as brawny as Kristoff was, being much slimmer, but whatever he had done in his life had certainly made him very buff.

Elsa just stood there unable to move. He mind was blank and she was growing hotter by the second. She just couldn't move. What was she doing?

Ranger just continued to practice, baring absolutely no mind to her at all. Wait a second? Was he trying to make her embarrassed?

Elsa after a few moments finally managed to find her voice. "Ranger!" she tried to scream, but to her horror it came out more like a moan.

She felt horrified and she resisted the urge to clamp her hands over her mouth. Just where at that come from. Never once in her entire life had she ever managed to get her voice to sound so… husky

Just what was she going to do about this now

Ranger immediately stopped what he was doing and turned to Elsa. She could see the twinkle of mischief in his eye. He immediately took notice of Elsa's new appearance; from the look of horror on her face, to the redness of her cheeks.

He mock bowed to her. "Why hello there, your majesty. To what do I owe the honor of you admiring my form?"

Elsa puffed out her cheeks desperately trying to stop them from becoming any redder than they already were; she was sure that she would explode if the heat continued to build up in there.

she stomped right up to him, giving him her best glare. despite her efforts, he just gave her an infuriating smug grin. Just what was she going to be able to do with him?

his eyes… she could just get lost in them forever. She had never seen such beautiful eyes. God… must he be such an attractive man?!

Wait what? Where did that come from? She gasped, trying to control herself. She could not get lost in the face of a man she barely knew!

Ranger just chuckled "your majesty, is there something you need?"

Elsa grimaced. She really needed to get mad right now. Too bad it was just very difficult to do when she was this close to a half naked man! "why did you tell my maid not to wake me up until now?" she screeched.

Ranger shrugged. "it was just a very late night, your majesty. I figured a beautiful woman such as yourself could use the extra sleep."

Elsa tried to control her blush. What was with this guy? Was he trying to evoke her wrath? Every time he talked she didn't know whether to smile or scream?

Make up your mind woman!

Elsa raised a hand "listen and listen well Ranger. Never, under any circumstance… order my staff around to do their job. You are my personal guard. You do not have any right to order someone around."

Ranger just shrugged "I don't do well with orders" he said smugly

Elsa just turned heel and walked out slamming the door behind her. God darn it. Men… they were just…, she had absolutely no words to describe just how infuriated she was

How was she ever going to put up with him? she was better off creating another snowman monster than to constantly deal with a man that she wasn't sure whether to love or hate

It was just so easy to hate him. but she found her self falling in love with him.

But how could she be doing that? it just wasn't right! she didn't want to love someone like him! he might be attractive but that was only half the problem that she found herself having

It was just so annoying. He was everything that she wasn't. smug, confident, arrogant. She was modest, insecure, humble

Was that why she found herself loving him? or was it that she was just attracted to him because of his features?

Regardless, she was just not sure how to deal with her feelings. she needed to get control of them soon because if she lost control.

What would her kingdom think of her, if it was found out that she was a young love struck queen infatuated with her own guard?

Nothing good that was for certain.

Elsa made her way back up o the castle, she needed to find a good distraction right about now.

* * *

Anna was walking around the painting room, one of her favorite places to be. She had spent a large amount of time in this room growing up, but to her it just never seemed to get old at all.

Kristoff was once again gone for the day, and Elsa was nowhere to be found, so Anna was just left to her own devices. Olaf would be around normally, but he enjoyed going into the mountains with Kristoff to visit marshmallow on occasion.

Of course there was Ranger, but he was also nowhere to be found. Unfortunately, that left Anna all by her lonesome, just wondering what to do with herself right now. She usually had something to do (which usually involve wreaking havoc within the castle walls) so just being bored right now was utterly a novel feeling.

Was it a coincidence that her sister and her guard were missing together? Anna's face broke into a grin this sure sounded like an interesting and promising start to what could be a very interesting and beautiful relationship.

Anna could have squealed she was so happy. Her plan was going very well right now. She wanted Elsa to get a boyfriend and it seemed that despite the rocky start (if constantly arguing was considered a rocky start) the two seemed to like to disappear together.

That was step one, or whatever phase of her plan she was in. honestly she didn't know why Elsa was so adamant about getting a boyfriend, much less one that she actually liked! It was as clear as day that she liked Ranger; it was written all over her face when she first saw him! so why not just date him?

Of course Elsa was always very adamant about things. In the past few months of getting to know her sister again, Anna discovered that Elsa could be very stubborn

But what was wrong with being selfish just once? It wasn't like Elsa was going to end up doing anything wrong. Couldn't she just fight for the man she loved? There couldn't be anything wrong with that!

Anna just wanted to see her sister happy for once. There shouldn't be anything wrong with that! what was the fun of ruling a kingdom if there was no one to rule it with.

Even worse, Elsa would have to eventually produce an heir wouldn't she? and if that was to be the case, she might just end up trapped in a loveless marriage with a man that would only using her for the sake of heirs rather than actually loving her.

Of course, Elsa could always make Anna or even her own children her heir, but Anna wanted Elsa to be a mother the same as she could if she and Kristoff ended up married.

But in the end, Anna supposed that it was Elsa's choice. oh well, it just was sad, at least in Anna's opinion. But Elsa was who she was, And Anna had no desire to change that. she loved Elsa just the way she was.

Ana grinned and then left the room. she might as well go try looking for Elsa. She certainly was not going to be able to find her looking at paintings that were all in one room

* * *

Elsa stomped back into the castle going in no particular direction she was just so mad, she was leaving a trail of ice behind her. Darn it. men were just so crazy. She really hoped that she was able to sort out all of her feelings soon. This was just too much for her at the moment.

Maybe Anna could set some light on the subject. She had been dating men for quite a while, so it would be nice to be able to get some advice on the matter.

The only problem was that Anna was dead centered on playing matchmaker with Elsa's love life. Elsa didn't like that at all, but unfortunately Anna was the one person she could ask without arousing to much suspicion. The last thing that Elsa needed was some sort of gossip going around the castle.

If anyone were to find out about her growing feelings for Ranger, just by being around him, then she was sure that everyone would just be against her again. the council would take over for a while until Elsa was able to get her mind together again. Elsa didn't want that. she was the Queen, she should be the one deciding how the kingdom should be run, not her council. Sure she loved their advice, but ultimately she was the ruler.

Unfortunately, Elsa was sure that Anna would be just as happy as everyone else would have been shocked. Anna was trying to meddle with her love life using Ranger to do it. and unfortunately it was working.

Which was why and how Elsa had managed to dig herself into this hole that she wasn't sure that she wanted to be in.

She sighed. She needed to find Anna and fast. The sooner that she was able to clear up this mess the better.

Where would Anna be during this time of day. Anna had many places to hide in the castle, but she shouldn't be too hard to find, since Kristoffs schedule kept him busy for the next few weeks.

Thankfully she didn't need to look to far because Anna came strolling down the hall with an eager grin on her face. her eyes lit up as soon as she saw Elsa, breaking into a run.

Elsa sighed this was going to end up being quite the wake up call.

Anna hugged her sister tightly squealing with happiness. "Elsa!" she cried "good morning. How are you doing"

Anna began to ramble on, barely even taking breaths in order to continue talking. Geez she was really on an energy rush today. Elsa hugged her back.

It was always a pleasure to see Anna in the morning. Especially now since Kai had done all her work for her the previous night. There wasn't anything important to do today. after the long process of the guard process, the council decided that they would personally deal with Elias replacement.

But right now Elsa had a personal meeting to deal with. For starters, she needed to talk to Anna. she smiled "Anna. yes I had a good morning, but there is something I really needed to be able to talk to you about if you don't mind."

Anna pulled away from her sister grinning "what about?" she asked

Elsa gulped, not sure where to start with this. how was she supposed to explain to Anna that she was in love? Again anna would be beside herself once she found out. Which would make talking about it even more difficult than Elsa would want it to be.

Oh what to do? Where to start? there were so many ways for this to end and right now, Elsa just wasn't sure how it was going to end. She needed Anna to be calm about this, otherwise it was not going to work out.

She grabbed Anna's hand and dragged her to the nearest room. she opened the door and was thankful to see that the room was empty. She pulled Anna in and locked the door behind them

Anna would probably end up being surprised by Elsa's actions, but privacy was of the upmost importance right now.

She dragged anna to a char and made her sit down.

She sat across from Anna and stared to explain her dilemma. "Anna. how long did it take for you to realize that you were in love with Kristoff?"

Anna blinked. Did she hear the right? did Elsa just ask about her relationship with Kristoff? Elsa had already met him and blessed their relationship. Just what could it mean to her right now?

Anna frowned. well she might as well answer Elsa, if only just to help her feel better.

"well, it was after you froze my heart." She heard Elsa gasp "he came back for me. He wanted to kiss me to thaw my heart."

Elsa slumped her shoulders. Of course. Anna had always been romantic but what she said was true. An act of true love save Anna that day. But that didn't help her here or now. She wasn't in any danger like Anna had been. She was just a love struck girl trying to sort out her emotions with the only person that she knew to talk to about the situation

"what is this about Elsa?"

Anna was getting worried. Elsa never got this worked up especially over Anna and her relationship with Kristoff. she love Anna and believed that Kristoff would be a good match for her.

But then what exactly was the problem right now? Surely it couldn't be about her?

"Elsa… whats wrong?" she asked

Elsa gulped "Anna…. I think I'm falling in love."

* * *

**looks like Elsa's going to need more than help from Anna. oh boy.**


	16. Is it love

**I Am exhausted. i have been awake for 24 hours getting home! but i am uploading this now because i really want to! so please Enjoy.**

**Now some of you have asked about Rangers past and his feelings for Elsa. this chapter has a bit of both in there so not to worry. just don't expect everything to be revealed too soon!**

* * *

Anna felt her mouth drop open at the words that had come out of her sisters mouth. In love? Elsa was in love? How could she be in love? This felt like, and Anna couldn't believe that she was thinking this, something that she would do! (and had done, considering what had happen with Hans several months ago.)

It didn't take a lot of work to figure out who Elsa was in love with either. There was only one person that ever managed to make her flustered that way she had been getting the last few days. Ranger. The young man who had somehow managed to worm his was into Elsa's heart.

Anna had to admit that something about him definitely was attractive. He was handsome to say the least, but what really surprised Anna was his personality. He was the exact opposite of Elsa. Anna would have thought Elsa would be more careful when choosing a suitor to marry, but apparently, she liked having a sarcastic arrogant man as a potential suitor.

That only left one problem, or rather two problems, which was a problem in and of itself. Ranger was both a guard in service of the Queen and a foreigner. As a guard, it would be highly improper for him to get into a relationship with the ruling monarch. If Elsa wasn't the ruling monarch then this wouldn't be as much of a problem, but a king with a lack of, well understanding of his position would not bode very well for Arendelle. Heck Anna didn't even understand half the things Elsa did! But elsa needed someone who cared for Arendelle as a king.

That left the problem of Rangers status as a citizen of Arendelle. He was not of Arendelle. In fact, he didn't seem he was from Norway. He never spoke of his homeland nor anything else of his past to anyone. While Anna had had a meal with him, he never brought up anything about himself. He just ate and sat in silence most of the time.

But Anna was smart. She knew exactly what was happening to Elsa. Right now Elsa was feeling something quite different from love.

She giggled lightly, leaving Elsa to quirk her eyebrow at her sisters peculiar behavior. Just what was going on through her mind. Elsa was not in the mood for strange guessing games from Ana right now. She had a large problem to deal with and Anna's lack of help would only prove a source od frustration that was not needed at the moment.

Anna just continued to giggle madly for a few seconds trying to regain the composure that she had. After a few moments she cleared her throat and opened her mouth to speak.

Elsa I know exactly what is bothering you right now." She said.

Elsa perked up, hoping that Anna would give some great advice that would help Elsa with the strange feeling in her heart.

She could feel her heart race as Anna opened her mouth to speak, revealing the best advice Elsa could hope for

"you don't love him at all"

Elsa felt her mouth drop open, accidently shrieking "What!" so loudly that she was sure that the entire castle had heard what she had said. What in the world was that supposed to mean? He didn't love him? If she didn't love him, why did she feel so happy around him? Why did he make her palms sweat and her heart race whenever he was near? Why di his smile make her want to melt. What in the world was Anna trying to tell her?

Anna giggled again, not realizing the turmoil that she was putting Elsa through. "Elsa… your just attracted to him" she clarified

Elsa frowned attraction…. Attraction was different from love… or at least that was she believed.

Anna began speaking again "Elsa… you love someone when you know everything about the person. Their habits mannerisms, their faults. You know, the little things that make up our personality." She smiled, giving off a strange look that made Anna look rather wise. Which was odd considering her more childish mannerisms. Oh god what had Elsa done?

"look at me and Kristoff. He is a gruff mountain man, who doesn't believe in the strangest of decisions, with a weird obsession with ice, who happens to be a best friend with a reindeer. But underneath all that, he is a big softie who is willing to do anything t help me." Anna said " and that's why I love him"

Elsa nodded. While she was still reeling with shock over Anna's rather wise knowledge on the matter (or was it really wise to consult a woman with only a few months of 'love' under her belt) she could at least know what Anna was saying.

"attraction is liking someone for their looks and the things that you may believe about them.

Anna had to stop herself right there a moment, getting lost in her words. She just couldn't believe that her sister the woman who knew everything (ok maybe not everything, but still) was asking for her advice on love. It was borderline the weirdest thing that Anna felt she would every do with her sister. If Elsa decided to ask Anna where babies came from Anna was sure that she would rip her own hair out (since she didn't know. If Elsa didn't know, that would be shocking.)

"Elsa… if you want to know if you are truly in love with him." She began "you have to get to know him better." She told Elsa

Elsa nodded and stood up. Giving Anna a smile. She turned and walked out of the room, walking down the hall, not really going anywhere.

So she was attracted to Ranger… not really in love with him. Not fully, at least.

But just hhow was she supposed to get to know him without arousing suspicions? If she started getting to close to him just how would he react? She had no idea who he was! What if he didn't feel the same way?

She felt her heart clench at the thought of that. She didn't want to lose him. They weren't exactly friends, since all he managed to do was annoy her, but if there was a chance they could become close, Elsa wanted that. But what could she do? Ranger was injured, so he realy couldn't do much of anything at the moment, at least not to the best of his abilities.

Maybe Anna could organize something fun? Anna had always said she wanted to go on a picnic or something outside of the town (something olaf would no doubt like to), and since Ranger was her personal guard now, he would have no choice

Elsa grinned loving the thought. It was perfect. Absolutely perfect. Anna could have her fun, while Elsa could work her way to finding out just what type of man Ranger actually was.

The question was would Elsa come to love the man? Or would she despise him?

* * *

Ranger sat in a private room, washing himself lightly with soap and water, trying very hard to ignore the stinging pain that erupted from his chest everytime he moved his hand across it. Elias, as he heard was the guards name had cut him very deep.

Ranger gingerly touched another scar that was on his chest with his free hand. The one that he had been dealt had hurt, but he was used to the pain. His whole body was covered in them.

Each one held a story. Each one had been a mark. he was back in that room, screaming in agony calling for help that would never come. He sighed. It was a life time ago but the pain felt just as fresh, no matter how much time had past .

Nightmares. They plagued him every night, dealing the pain over and over. He never found peace, no matter how much he ran, no matter how far he got.

Such was the life he was given

he placed the soap down and grabbed a towel that he had left for himself. He dried himself, and got dressed. Afterwards, he grabbed some gauze and wrapped it around his chest, wincing as he did so. He slipped on his shirt hen left the room.

This castle. It was huge larger than any building he had ever seen in all his travels.

And for now, it was his home.

But just how long could he find himself staying here. He was the Queens personal guard. He was bound by duty to honor her. To defend her.

He scoffed. She was a Queen with powers of ice. Yet she was very peaceful, and had not yet sought to expand her kingdom. What type of threat could she possibly be?

Her face flashed in his mind. Her pale skin, her pink lips, drawn into a smile, giving him a sly look with her piercing blue eyes

She was beautiful. He had met many woman on his journey, but Elsa… she was something else.

But she didn't know him. She didn't know anything about him. If she knew what he was, the things he had done. Would she still see him as the aame sarcastic jerk that loved to make her angry? Or would she see him as something…

Could she… she could even learn to love him….

He frowned, feeling bitter. No. Love? What was love? He had gone his whole life alone. He didn't need love.

He growled grabbing his arm, tracing yet another scar…

More screams more pain…

He punched the nearest wall, wincing slightly, but he ignored the throbbing pain and simply kept walking forward

He found himself walking outside into the guard training Area that he had been in the other day

He had yet to fully explore the castle, all he had ever managed to do was get lost, except for when he had been directed to his room and the guard training area, not to mention the bathing chamber, that Elsa had apparently set up for him.

Women. He would never understand them. Even kayla was a mystery to him

Kayla… how was she. He glanced at the sky, hoping the young woman was doing alright. Erhard and her were probably doing the same thing they always did. Cleaning supplies and repairing anything that they could to make a living

Maybe he could go see them someday… if Elsa would allow him some sort of day off. It wasn't like he was doing anything right now.

He walked into the castle, simply walking in any direction until he found someone, this was all that he could do.

* * *

Anna sat in the room that Elsa had left her in, gathering her thoughts. Ranger… Elsa was attracted to him. Just what was she supposed to do with that?

What surprised her was how fast it took Elsa to even do it. Elsa the woman who told her not to marry a man she had just met was openly admitting to her that she fancied a man she hadn't even known for very long.

Men… just what was it about them that made women want to drop everything for them?

Then again, Anna had done the exact same thing with Hans, but for Elsa to do it? Anna would have thought Elsa would be far more thoughtful than that!

apparently falling headfirst was a trait that the two shared.

Stranger things had happened, if anna could say anything on the matter.

She glanced out the window to the guard training area of the castle. Ranger was either training or washing, depending on what the guards did this time of day. It wasn't like Anna knew their schedules, but then again, they needed breaks too.

But Ranger, did he even work with them? He didn't seem the type to. When she had caught him practicing (she blushed, hoping Elsa had gotten to see what she had seen) he was alone, but then again he may have just been the only one in the shop who knew how to handle a sword.

But if Elsa was falling for him… did he feel the same way?

Anna smiled and stood up. Detective Anna was on the case..

Quickly she made her way out of the room. She needed to find Ranger and start asking him some questions.

* * *

She later found him trying to find his way around the castle (something that Anna or Elsa still hadn't been able to do because of the fact he was unconscious during most of the time.

Anna had giggled the entire time, when he found the young man, but it wasn't too bad. She decided that since she was the first person to find Ranger, she would personally give him a tour of the castle (since there was so much that he would need to learn)

After what seemed like hours( Anna had insisted on going into detail within every room and hallway that they entered so that Ranger could understand everything thar was being said), the two had finally managed to go through most of what remained of the rather extensive castle (except for the personal quarter areas of the monarchs and a few other areas) Anna took ranger back to his own Quarters. It was getting close to dinner time so Anna would have to get ready to meet up with Elsa

"so Ranger, how did you enjoy this tour of the castle done by yours truly?" Anna asked with a beaming smile on her face.

Ranger shrugged. Anna was quite the tour guide. He was pretty tired after all that. But he just couldn't resist giving her a smile. Anna's attitude was just to infectious.

It helped him feel better after punching a wall early today.

"it was quite fun. Maybe you should give up being a princess and just give tours of the entire city for the tourists"

Anna just laughed. No one had ever suggested such a thing (then again no one had visited the castle for such a thing either) but maybe that wouldn't be such a bad idea . she certainly spent enough time roaming the castle in her free time.

"not a bad idea Ranger, maybe you're on to something." She said with a wide grin. She was the princess so the citizens of Arendelle really couldn't complain much.

But Anna could worry about that another day. She had spent all this time buttering the bread. She came to talk to Ranger about Elsa and hopefully learn more about the enigma that was her (hopefully) new found friend

"soo…" she said slowly "how do you feel about Elsa?"

She said it right off the bat, hopefully Ranger would get that and spill. The sooner she knew the better.

Ranger just bit his lip. "I haven't known her long enough to get an opinion on her yet. I do believe that she is a genuinely nice person, and will be a fine queen in her own right."

Anna held back a groan. Clearly the young man had not understood the meaning behind her words. he just didn't understand anything Anna was trying to say at the moment.

Instead she tried another tactic "ok, well then, can you tell me about your home then." She asked giving him a hopeful look.

Ranger stiffened refusing to look at Anna. Without a word, he opened his door and slammed it shut, with such force, Anna yelped and took a step back.

What was all that about?

* * *

Meanwhile Elsa was in her study when she heard the slam. It made her jump and she looked around, trying to regain her composure. Just what had happened. Judging by the sound it seemed it came from her guest quarters.

So it was Ranger. He was the only person who was in the guest quarters. Was he upset about something? No one just slammed a door because they could.

She placed her pen down and exited the study, making her way towards Rangers door, where to her surprise, she found Anna with a rather upset look on her face.

What had Anna done to Ranger to make him slam the door? Or had Ranger done something to Anna?

She made her way over to Anna "Anna?" she asked softly, trying to get the younger girls attention.

Anna glanced at Elsa biting her lip.

"I don't know" was all that she could say.

Elsa sighed, glancing at the door that held her personal guard. She would have to have a long talk with him, but when he wasn't so angry. Instead she took Anna back to her own room, wanting to hear Anna's side of the story

She sat in a chair across from Anna waiting for the younger girl to speak.

Anna took a moment to collect herself.

"I was just finishing a tour around the castle because, you know, Ranger still hadn't had a full tour, and didn't know his way around, and I asked him where he was from, and he just slammed the door in my face."

Elsa felt her mouth drop open. Ranger just slammed the door in her sisters face, just like that? Over a simple Question about where he was from. That didn't seem well, necessary.

Just what about home could Ranger be hiding? Whatever it was it was enough to cause him to get angry enough to just ignore everything around him.

Elsa would have to talk to him about it.

Anna continued "Elsa, I don't know what his problem is, but, maybe we should just leave it alone."

Elsa sighed "no Anna, he is my guard, I will have to talk to him about his behavior. There is nothing else I can do about it. Anna gulped. Elsa meant business.

Without another word, Elsa left the room.


	17. Pain

**Ok! This will speed up the story! some new characters, new revelations, but the climax will be here soon along with all the answers you may have for the story so far.**

**i just don't want to rush things. i feel that if i do, this story will not be good. so don't expect it too soon.**

**Read on!**

* * *

Ranger stomped into his room before falling to his knees screaming. His face was hot with tears and hugged himself touching the many scars that littered his body. He couldn't tell her.

He didn't want to remember!

It hurt! It hurt!

He just wanted to run. To forget

"_mama papa! Please!"_

he shuddered, pushing the memory away. His home meant nothing to him. he hadn't been there in 12 years and he remembered the reason he never returned

even if he did, there was nothing left for him there. They had seen to that.

death… destruction… hatred.. fear…

he screamed once again. why? Why was he the once cursed like this! what had he done wrong? Unfortunately he knew the answer to that terrible question

and it had haunted him all his life.

He curled onto the ground sobbing for the first time in a long time.

He lied there for what seemed like years. he could vaugly here footsteps, but he didn't care. The door opened but he stayed where he was ignoring whoever was there.

He heard the person gasp. It must be quite the sight. A 19 year old man curled onto the ground sobbing like a baby. He didn't mind it. he just wanted to cry and forget about everything.

It just hurt to much.

He felt someone beside him, wrapping their arms around him and drawing them into an embrace. He clutched them tightly, sobbing into their shoulder.

The person was cold, and their hair was white. It was Elsa.

He vaguely marveled that she was comforting him, but he didn't care. It was the best thing that could ever happen to him.

He felt venerable, scared. He hated it. he was stronger than this.

He felt Elsa rub circles on his back, trying to coax his crying.

No one had ever done that to him before.

Within moments he relaxed. His sobs turned into hiccups and he wrapped his arms around Elsa.

"shh…" Elsa whispered.

She pulled back, looking at Rangers face. for the first time. She didn't see a smug solider. For the first time she saw a scared little boy. leaning forward, she pecked his forehead.

And just like that the spell was broken.

Ranger pulled back, crawling away from elsa, with a look of fear on his face

"Stop!" he screamed "please! Just stop it Elsa!"

he stood up abruptly and ran toward the balcony. He slammed against the window banging his fists on it.

so many things were running through him. the pain of his past. The love he was sure he felt for Elsa. The feeling of powerlessness. The feeling of bliss, knowing that he had friends.

He didn't want this! it hurt to much! He wasn't meant to have this!

he slid back down to the floor

"stop making me care about you! I can't I can't" he screamed. He felt tears prick his eyes once again, but he refused to cry again. he wouldn't

he couldn't lose control….

Elsa watched as the man she had grown to love break down in the most heart wrenching way she could ever think of.

What had happened to him? why wouldn't he tell her? his body… his home… why did he hate it so?

Had he ever told anyone? Was that why he was suffering so much? She stood up and walked toward him.

She wanted so desperately to help him. he looked so scared so venerable that it was breaking her heart. The man she loved. She wanted to help him in any way she could.

He stiffened. No! he didn't want her here. She needed to leave. He couldn't let her see him like this

"get out…" he growled.

Elsa stopped in her tracks. He turned to her, his face set in anger.

"I said GET OUT!"

Elsa backed away and exited the room

She felt scared. Not of Ranger and his anger towards her, but of what he was feeling. He seemed so broken, so helpless, so unlike the man she knew him to be.

She placed a hand on the door, hearing Ranger just cry. She felt her heart clench with each passing moment. tears were threatening to break out, a patch of ice appearing at her feet.

She had thought he own childhood had been an ordeal. But Ranger, suffering a breakdown at the mere mention of 'home'

Something had happened to him. something he never got over

And he would never tell her

* * *

Elsa made her way to the council chambers where Zodrian and his colleague Joran would be waiting for her. they had requested her presence the night before needed to talk to her about several problems that had been appearing. Namely there were a few burglaries that were happening in the town which were getting more frequent

She opened the door where she found Zodrian and Joran waiting for her.

Joran was a middle aged man with shoulder length greying black hair and a full face beard. He was her scientific advisor

And he was Zodrians brother. His son, whose name was Caleb she believed. was solider in her guard, some years older than her, being older than Elias was, even, but not by much.

Caleb could replace Elias as her captain she supposed. The two were very similar, but Caleb was described by Joran as a beacon of hope and moral amongst the guards. He was originally up for the job, according to reports she had read, but he passed, preferring to train new recruits with his experience in the guard rather than lead them which was what led to Elias getting the job

Elsa took her seat across from the two men. She cleared her throat

"Zodrian, Joran. You wished to speak with me?"

Zodrian nodded "there have been reports of dangerous acts of thievery, your highness, and its worrying us because they are getting closer to the castle.

"were worried that they may try to hit the castle treasury." Joran told her in a mellow voice.

Elsa agreed. While it would be difficult to fully hit the treasury with only a few men, but she needed to make sure that didn't happen. The treasury was very valuable and any amount of gold stolen from it wouldn't exactly help Elsa in any shape or form.

"what do you propose?" she asked Zodrian as her military advisor, his wisdom would be far more helpful in this situation

"that's why Jorans here. Since Elias is imprisoned for his attack on your guard." Elsa noticed a lack of concern in his voice

"we believe that Caleb should take another guard with him and scout out Arendelle. We may be able to find some trace of the thieves before they get closer to the castle

Elsa weighed her options, on one end she could send anyone with Caleb, but there was one person who stood out in her mind.

Ranger. Though he was her personal guard, he was still bound to do whatever it took to defend Arendelle as a member of her guard. Plus since she really hadn't any need to leave the castle as of yet, Ranger would need something to do.

He certainly needed to get to know at least some of the other guards, but there were two problems that currently stopped him.

One, his wounds. It had only been a day since his wounds had been tended too and it left him not at his best physically

Two, his current mental state. Given that he was left crying and angry, she wasn't sure that it would be the best idea to send him out anywhere.

Which left her with one of two options. Either send in a recruit or send Caleb only.

She certainly wasn't going to send in Elias. He was far to untrustworthy and could potentially cause more harm than good.

However, if Caleb was anything like his cousin, then going alone should be no problem.

* * *

Ranger sat on his bed his face in his hands. He could not believe that he yelled at her. true he had been upset, thanks to Anna asking the wrong questions

But he couldn't tell them.

Though he had to at least find Ana and apologize. And Elsa too. They would no doubt ask for some sort of explanation but he would just wave it off. He wasn't ready to tell them. but maybe he would never be ready. he hadn't told anyone the reason.

He stood up and walked down the hall to Anna's rom, where hopefully she would end up being

He knocked on her door, waiting for her to answer. He heard someone in the room move and a few moments later, the door opened revealing Anna. her Aqua eyes glanced at him for a moment before glaring at him, either she hadn't really noticed his red eyes or she was still to upset with him to really care.

Either way before she could utter one word to him he muttered

"I'm sorry."

Anna blinked unsure if she had even heard that right. had he just said sorry? And actually sounded remorseful?

Ok Anna wasn't really one to hold a grudge, at least not for something as small as a door slammed in her face, not like it was really that much of a problem to begin with anyway

Still she relaxed giving Ranger a smile

"its ok Ranger, you don't have to worry about that. I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to upset you"

Ranger shook his head "no Anna.. I just… I've been dealing with it for so long now… I shouldn't have gotten so upset"

He knew he was lying. He had never dealt with it. he ran from it. that's why he was always moving.

Anna smiled at him "Ranger, if you need any help, I will always be here for you. She reached on her tippy toes and kissed his cheek. Ranger turned and walked away. He already loved Elsa. He couldn't bare the thought of caring (not romantically, Anna was beautiful, but she wasn't his type) for her too.

Speaking of which, he now had to go and find Elsa. Which was going to be difficult. Anna may have shown him around the castle, but he still didn't know where Elsa would be. He hadn't exactly learned what her schedule would be.

* * *

meanwhile in the castle dungeon, Elias sat in his cell, angry. He had been in here for only two days without any indication that he would soon be let out. This was ridiculous! He was a master swordsman! The captain of the guard! He shouldn't be treated like this.

but he was.

He growled punching the wall. It was all that kids fault. He didn't know his name, but he would get out, and when he did, that boy was going to pay.

With his life if he had to

Elias may no longer have the luxury of moving freely throughout the castle, but he did have his supporters. He would need to gather them closer and fortify a plan of attack.

And that would only be the start of his revenge….

* * *

Elsa exited her council chambers ready to return to her office and start on her documents. If there was one thing she loved it was making sure she wouldn't fall behind on her work

Being the Queen was never easy, especially if you weren't up to date with the affairs of your country and the needs that you had to meet to continue with the prosperity of your kingdom.

She made her way back to her study, where to her surprise she found Ranger waiting for her.

He looked… well he wasn't crying anymore, but his eyes were red. He was standing there leaning against the doorframe.

Elsa walked up to him "Ranger."

Ranger turned to look at her. "yes your majesty"

Elsa bit her lip. She didn't want to ask him this; he was still healing after all. But he was very skilled and she had seen him practice. Even if the wound had not yet healed, it didn't seem like it had stopped him.

"can you tell me if your ok?" she asked "physically, I mean. I may have a job for you."

Ranger blinked. He was surprised to hear this. "what type of job?"

"according to some of my advisors, there have been reports of thievery in the town over the past few days, and they are escalating very quickly. There is the possibility that they may end up attacking the castle. I need you and lieutenant Caleb to scout out the town, ask anything you can in order to gain any info on these thieves."

Ranger shrugged "Caleb?"

"one of my guards"

Ranger grinned "why of course your majesty."

Without another word he turned and walked toward the guard barracks. If any guards were there Caleb would be too.

* * *

Caleb, was a fairy large man, almost six feet tall, very muscled, with jet black hair. Unlike the other guards of Arendelle Caleb fashioned himself a unique set of armor. It was mostly a dark shade of blue, but included several decorative red lines running down the arms of his armor and down his boots. He had forged it himself, a symbol that he was a capable guard.

His uncle and cousin had questioned the odd color scheme, but he ignored them. the color was not as important as the durability of the armor

He walked around the training area, watching the less experienced recruits that were trying to improve. It was tough work, but with dedication they would become some of the finest warriors that Arendelle had to offer.

There weren't many members of the guard, maybe enough for a small scale attack, such as a group of bandits, but the Queen and her ancestors had mid it clear that war was not in the best interest of Arendelle

The guard needed to be ready, no matter the threat. Caleb was a good teacher or so he had been told, so he was doing his best to make sure his troops were ready.

His uncle, Zodrian had been one of the finest warriors of his time

Caleb wanted to be just as capable as his uncle had been in the past. It was a bit of a rivalry between him and his cousin at the time.

But then the incident happened. Elias was known to let his anger get the best of him sometimes; it had caused some amount of trouble with his father in the past. But to straight up try and murder an opponent for besting you? Caleb had felt ashamed of his cousin.

Know people were looking to him to guide them as them as their new captain. Caleb didn't want the job. He was better at building the potential of those he trained; leading them had always been Elias's best ability.

Well now Elias was imprisoned and stripped of his rank. He wouldn't be leading anyone for a while.

As he surveyed the troops he saw another young man enter the field. Caleb was surprised it was that same boy whom Elias had wounded. Why would he be here? Shouldn't he be healing?

It wasn't Caleb's place to question the actions of others, but even he knew when to take a break.

He walked toward the younger man

"excuse me…. Ranger was it?" he wasn't certain about the mans name, he had only heard rumors .

Ranger nodded "that's right. I'm looking for lieutenant Caleb. The Queen has asked that I join him on a search for some bandits.

Caleb nodded. His father had spoken to him about that. Caleb wanted to help with that; there were others that could survey the training for the next few hours while he was away

"that would be me"

Ranger grunted "well then, I suppose we better go."

Caleb nodded. "listen, you go ahead, I still need to sort things out here. Go get any equipment you need then meet me in the town square."

Ranger nodded he turned and ran towards the castle gate.

* * *

Ranger ran. He had one place to be and that was to get back to Erhard and Kaylas shop. He needed to grab his armor and weapons (which he had left when Kai had asked him to come to the castle for that small tournament.) he refused to wear the armor of the Arendellian guard.

Even worse, if there were bandits, the two could be in grave danger. Erhard might be a decent fighter (if he did indeed know how to fight) and while Kayla was certainly well muscled, bandits were ruthless. He had met a couple over the years and they were not the nicest of people.

He ran into the town and made his way into the shop, swinging the door open. None to his surprise he found Kayla and Erhard, doing what they always did.

Kayla looked up and he eyes widened, before she smiled and leapt of the chair she was sitting on and ran towards Ranger hugging him tightly. Ranger groaned; he hadn't told Kayla about his injury.

She pulled back, grinning madly

"Ranger!" she squealed.

Ranger smiled, walking into the building and making his way to his room. sure enough his armor and weapons were sitting on his bed. Kayla must have put them there after he left

He quickly grabbed his armor and slipped it on, before attaching his sword to his back

He made his way back to the first room, where he found the two staring at him with concern

"kayla" he said "listen there are bandits around here. I need you to stay safe"

Erhard snorted "don't worry about us kid, just make sure your able to catch those bandits before they do any harm."

Ranger nodded then left the building.


	18. Captured

**This will be multiple parts. M****ostly. **

* * *

Ranger walked into the town center, where sure enough, he found Caleb waiting for him. he was standing, waiting for him, looking off into the sun. it was quite odd. Despite the fact that they were supposed to be looking for bandits, Caleb managed to look so serene. Well then again they weren't exactly being attacked so there was that, but even so they needed to be on their guard; the bandits could be anywhere.

Caleb spotted Ranger walking towards him. he motioned for Ranger to follow him and he began walking towards the borders of the town.

Now that was very confusing. Elsa had told Ranger that the bandits wee frequently attacking in the town ,but apparently, Caleb had the bright idea of trying to find the base of operations (that was the only Idea Ranger could come up with)

But what was Caleb thinking? Bandits liked to travel in packs; just because maybe two or three were attacking at any given time that did not mean that they were the only ones. Bandits were like rats, quick and sneaky. They liked to hide from the light.

Not to mention, Ranger did not know the woods and mountains outside of the city either. He had arrived by port from mainland Europe, not from another city in Norway!

Which made him a little blind puppy following Caleb. Sure Ranger knew that Caleb was in charge; Ranger didn't really have a rank as the Queens guard. Plus Caleb knew the woods anyway. that didn't mean that he enjoyed blindly following someone.

And now they were supposed to be working together when only one person knew what was going on?

Well it could have been worse.

But what was Caleb's idea should they find the bandits. Arrest them all? Caleb my be a decent fighter( he certainly looked strong) but only two of them? the Bandits were more likely to overrun them for sport than quiver with fear!

He quickly ran to catch up with the older man, hoping that he had a better idea then charging through an entire squad of bandits (if that was indeed the case)

Hopefully, Caleb was smarter than that. Ranger wasn't vain in his fighting skills. During his travels, he knew when to fight or run. They might be able to fight off a few bandits, but better to run if there were two many of them.

Or just not get spotted.

Ok, maybe it would be best to follow Caleb's lead until it became to dangerous.

The two exited the town, beginning a long trek around the fjord. Ranger gasped, slightly surprised by the large forest that stood at the edge of the town. He hadn't yet seen it (since he never had to leave Arendelle in the past few weeks)

If Caleb's plan was to search the entire forest, it would be the dumbest thing ever. It was huge! The bandits were more likely to find them wandering the woods than the other way around.

It seemed very doubtful that Caleb had a better plan that that.

Ranger certainly couldn't leave to go searching on his own; he hadn't been out here, so even if Caleb knew what he was doing, Ranger certainly didn't. calling out for each other could attract the bandits. If they were alone, that just made them more of an easy target.

Not something that was needed.

Ranger didn't like this. while Elsa knew that Ranger might needed something to do after his little episode, he was the last person qualified for a trek through this forest.

But then again, he might need to do something like this so he could actually get to know the lands outside, should he ever needed to come out here again.

That is if he didn't leave Arendelle for good first.

Still he was uncomfortable being useless like this.

But the only way to become useful was to actually do it in the first place.

The two just continued walking, not really saying anything. Not that Ranger was in the mood for talking anyway, plus, they were supposed to be looking for Bandits; any conversation could prove to be a distraction to the mission

After a very long walk the two entered the lush green forest. It looked so serene, so peaceful.

Too bad they were looking for bandits.

Ranger had his fare share of fights over the journey he had been on. Fought a few wild animals and even more thieves. They were not any fun.

Unfortunately people like them never seem to learn not to deal with the wrong people until it was already to late for them.

Ranger knew that more than anyone.

He shuddered. It had been many years since that day, but it still chilled him to his bones

He had been so young. It had been an accident but hew as so angry that he didn't care. Until it happened again a few years later.

he huffed ignoring the regret. There wasn't anytime to dwell on the past. He had bandits to find. There was no time for him to get distracted by the events of the past

Caleb seemed just as focused as he was, not even registering the shudder his partner (were they partners, they certainly weren't friends; they had known each other long) had emitted.

Caleb was used to people whining during his training sessions. He had learned to ignore any such feelings of negativity a long time ago. He needed people to be efficient, not scared.

Which was easy to do when you were training them into shape.

The two just continued to walk in silence, listening to the sounds of the forest. There were animals, the sound of a stream nearby.

There wasn't any sort of disruption in the environment, no sound that seemed out of the ordinary.

At least until they heard a twig snap. They turned around, drawing their weapons, but to there surprise, it was only a little bunny. Hopping out of the bush.

It stared at them, not at all scared of the weapons that they had held in their hands.

They sighed turning around, but they only took a few more steps before they felt the earth shift beneath them and they were flung into the air. They hand fallen straight into a trap. The bandits had found them. they must of seen them coming.

* * *

meanwhile Elsa sat in her room staring out into the forest she had sent Ranger out into. Had she been right to send him out there after is breakdown earlier? She believed that a mission would distract him from whatever was tormenting him, but now she couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong with him.

but if he refused to talk with her how could she help him? he had refused any sort of help that she might have been able to provide him with after she had been forced out of the room. he had said "stop making be care about you!"

when he had said that her heart had broke. He did love her. or at least felt something for her. but he didn't want to love her. he was scared. But of what she couldn't be certain.

Everything began with 'Home' something had happened to him there, something so terrible that he refused to talk about it.

She groaned. She had no idea where to start! Ranger had come off of a ship from somewhere, but that had been weeks ago. There was no way she was going to be able to find out where he was from based on that anyway.

The only thing she near for certain was that he came from the mainland.

She sighed she needed to find out a way to get him to talk about himself without shutting him down. hard to do when he was off doing something that she had forced him on

But he would return he had to.

She didn't want anything to happen to him. he may have known the risks of being a soldier in any sort of organization, but he was not at all expendable. Never to her. Anna had got him the job because she wanted someone to get closer to Elsa to get them to fall in love

Elsa just didn't expect it to happen so soon. Or for it to be mutual. She had been scared to love once, afraid of hurting the ones she loved.

Or worse to end up in a loveless marriage.

But now? The one she would love to spend her life with was breaking down and out on a mission that she had sent him on.

If he didn't return, it would be her fault.

* * *

Anna slid down the banister, whooping with delight as she flew into the air, landing clumsily into the arms or one of the bodies of armor that was perfectly placed for her stunts.. of course that's not what they wee there for in the first place, but Anna had managed to find uses for them in the past.

During her time growing up, this had been one of her favored past times (except for talking to paintings that didn't real talk back, but what else was there to do in a place like this). at the time it was one of the only sources of entertainment that she had given that Elsa was locked up in her room at the tie, but that was all in the past. Now she and Elsa could do things like this all of the time (that is if Elsa had the time and actually would go and do it)

Instead though she found herself doing things with olaf (if he wasn't with kristoff or out in his gardens) most of the time since he couldn't feel pain. That tended to help out when you were doing some dangerous things. He was often wandering the castle and made a great person (or snowman) to hang out with

Anna giggled, simply having fun with herself . this just never got tiring, even if it did hurt most of the time. Elsa would have scolded her, but she was not anywhere near her at the moment.

Anna picked herself up, landing on her feet, before smoothing out her dress and began walking in no particular direction.

She felt sad, remembering what had happened earlier that day. Why had Ranger flipped out on her? he had apologized to her after words but that did not explain his outburst to begin with.

Men were so confusing. She had her share fair of fights with kristoff every now and then, mostly over the others habits, but never once had he gotten that upset.

There was more to him than she realized. But would it come back to hurt her, or even worse Elsa?

* * *

well this was another fine mess. Ranger and Caleb after being dragged through the woods (and knocked out before hand!) the two men found themselves in cells, stripped of their weapons and chained to the wall. The bandits had just left them there. They had not once showed up to gloat about the capture which was quite odd to say the least; Ranger would have thought that they would have done that much at least.

He was so angry at the moment. of all the times to be captured they found themselves to be in the heart of the den. Wherever that den just happened to be and exactly how far they were was another matter all together to be saved after the two managed (when not if) to get out of there.

But that was the least of their problems. Ranger was screaming. Yelling like there was no tomorrow. He hated chains with a burning passion. Of course who happened to like them.

Even so , hopefully he would be able to get someones attention after managing to annoy them. even bandits liked to have peace and quiet.

Unfortunately Caleb was the one who was getting annoyed. He was in another cell trying very hard to block out the sound of what could have been a raging bull. The younger man had been screaming for several minutes and there was no indication that any one was coming to shut him up. for one Caleb wished he was the one who could. He didn't know how much longer he would be able to take it.

How anyone was supposed to listen to such loud noise escaped Caleb. Ranger hadn't even stopped to breath what type of lungs did this guy have?

He wanted to just think calmly about a way to get out but Ranger was making that impossible!

He knew that they chains were very unlikely to break unless they were pulled on very hard, but neither man possessed such strength. O how they were even going to get out of here was a mystery.

Ranger however was struggling with all his might to break the chains. He didn't want this. not again, never again. he refused to just give up.

Finally after what seemed like ages, someone unlocked the door to the cell that Ranger was left in. in walked a man holding a cloth. Clearly he was there to stop the screaming.

Wel that had managed to work. Ranger grinned this was going to be fun….

Meanwhile caleb heard a "what the?" followed by the sound of someone being tackled, a struggle then a sickening crack. A dull thud echoed throughout the room

That came from Rangers cell. What was going on. Caleb didn't have time to wonder because a moment later the door to his cell opened and in walked Ranger, carrying the keys. He ran over to Caleb and freed him. Caleb rubbed his wrists. Those chains were really tight.

"how?" Caleb asked. He wasn't strong enough to break those chains. How was Ranger able to free himself?

Ranger frowned "I don't have time to explain, we need to get out of here now. They could be back at any moment."

The two fled from the cells grabbing their weapons, which had been placed nearby thankfully. They were going to need them in order to get out. As they fled Caleb past Rangers cell, where there lay a body with his neck broken.

He gasped. Ranger had killed the man. Why? He could just have easily knocked him out, but to straight up kill him? there was no need for that, even here.

Of course there were more bandits, so maybe then it would be ok to kill them in order to ensure their escape, but here? They could have just tied him up so he wouldn't make much noise. Chained him in so he couldn't warn the others.

However there wouldn't be enough time to worry about it. they needed to escape. He continued to run, hoping to find the way out.

* * *

Elsa began to fidget, feeling quite strange. Her thoughts returned to her nightmare, the one she had. It had scared her. she didn't exactly remember what had happened, but that same sense of dread was eating away at her heart.

She glanced back at the forest. Something was wrong. Ranger…. He was in some sort of trouble that was the only explanation that Elsa had. Had he run into the bandits? She had seen him fight,.. It took a lot to take him down; not even her guards were able to defeat him. so how could some low life bandits take him down.

So why did she feel so uneasy.

Anna had once told her that she knew when something bad would happen to kristoff (he had hurt his back once) and sure enough he had come back with some ice having injured his back along the way.

She stood up holding a hand to her aching heart. She was scared. For the first time in these past few months, she was scared.

She had to believe that Ranger was ok. She refused to believe that anything could have happened to him.

She would never believe it otherwise.

She exited her room, hoping that some fresh air would ease her mind.

* * *

Caleb and Ranger continued to sneak (they did not want to attract attention to themselves) through the base of operations that the bandits had. Unfortunately it was harder than they realized. They weren't in some building or camp. They were in a mountain. The bandits had built a large base in the mountainside somewhere close to Arendelle (hopefully)

Of course that meant they had to somehow find their way out. Which meant going through tunnels and a large amount of tunnels in order to get out. Now both of them were blind and in the enemy camp.

There was no telling how terrible this was going to end up becoming. Bandits would not take kindly to the things they needed to do in order to escape

Thankfully there were many tunnels to hide in should they need to. Unfortunately that also meant a lot of ways to try to find the way out.

Ranger and Caleb snuck into one of the passages, hearing nothing. Either the bandits were also snaking or they just weren't around to hear to men not making so much noise.

Caleb peeked over a corner, only to move back immediately. Saying "shh" just around the corner there were several people working to clear a tunnel to extend the base. Wghich meant they had to find another way out of there.

Quietly the two walked back into the other direction, going through another tunnel. To their surprise, they found a gate way of some sort that looked like there was some light coming from it.

The two quickly sneaked down the path entering the room.

They found themselves in a large room.

It appeared to be the center of the mountain, with many tunnels that lead to other areas

Unfortunately for them, it just also happened to be filled with a large amount of bandits as well, looking at them with shock.

Oh joy.

* * *

**So how did Ranger ****escape? will he and Caleb survive? All will be revealed. **


	19. Escape

**ok, not as good as i wanted it to be, but since the climax will probably end up coming in the next three chapters, i will say that things will have a little more action once we get there.**

* * *

Caleb and Ranger just stood there, not believing their luck. It seemed to them that they had just walked straight in the middle of the hideout, where everyone seemed to be.

So much for sneaking around. There was no chance they could fight all of them off. Their numbers were just too great.

Even if the bandits were cowards they wouldn't just let them go without a fight, which they would no doubt win. Caleb may be a soldier but even he knew when a fight was lost. Ranger would have to agree on that one.

"you take the ones on the left, I'll take the ones on the right?"

Ranger looked at the older man with a annoyed look "seriously that's your plan?"

Caleb shrugged "at least I've got a plan." He argued

Ranger sighed "there are a hundred of them in there!" he yelled. It was futile to try and fight that many people without help. They would lose.

Caleb growled "what, come on don't think like that! we have to get out of here right. think optimistic like me!

"you're an idiot!"

the bandits just looked at the two men who continued to argue. They suddenly realized that the two men were the prisoners that they had captured earlier. They suddenly reached for there weapons and charged at them

Ranger and Caleb stopped arguing, noticing the ever approaching wave.

Ranger knew that they couldn't just fight. They needed a different plan. He looked around, noticing that the central area looked like some kind of mine. Nearby was an empty cart on a track.

There were also large barrels and some flintlocks on a table nearby.

His eyes lit up. this was a weapon transport room. they must have been using it to stock weapons and ammunitions somewhere else in the mountain. Quickly he ran towards the table and grabbed a flintlock.

"Caleb, grab the barrel!" he screamed at the other man. Caleb who was standing his ground, looked at him with confusion

"Just do it.

Caleb ran to a barrel and picked it up. Ranger then ran towards a cart and jumped in. Caleb followed, putting the barrel on the cart, before pushing it in order to give them so distance. After picking up some speed he jumped on as well, steadying the barrel.

Ranger kicked the barrel, enough to lert a little gun powder out, so that it would sprinkle out.

"lets get out of here.

It would be a wild ride.

* * *

Elsa walked out into the gardens, going to her favorite spot. She sat down trying to ease her mind. But the flowers did little to help. She still felt scared. Ranger… she knew she was being idiotic. Ranger was a soldier. He must have known the risks of this mission. Not everything was going to happen peacefully, even Elsa knew that much. As queen she would want to prevent aggression, but there may come a time where it would be impossible.

That being said she sincerely hoped that the two men weren't going to be in too much trouble.

* * *

Anna entered the castle gardens having just walked there for no particular reason. She had always loved the gardens. Not as much as Elsa did, but Anna always enjoyed seeing the plants and wildlife that resided here. It didn't hurt that she could find olaf here to. If he wasn't wandering the castle or with kristoff.

But since it was nearing winter, Kristoff began the real work of his job. Actually getting the ice. Anna wanted to go with him, since this time of year meant that ice harvesting would take up so much time.

However Kristoff didn't want Anna getting hurt. Neither did Elsa. Anna was known for recklessness, but Kristoff argue that ice harvesting was much more dangerous than the stunts Anna would pull. So here she was simply waiting for him to return.

It was quite boring , she had to admit, but there were plenty of other things to do in the castle. It wasn't like she was dependent on Kristoff for fun. she just didn't like waiting for him.

But that's just what there lives were. Sure it was unorthodox, a princess dating a commoner, but Anna didn't care. She enjoyed their time together. She really couldn't ask for anything different.

She made her way deeper into the gardens, noticing just how beautiful it was.

As she made her way through she stopped, noticing Elsa on a bench, surrounded by a large amount of flowers. She looked upset.

She was sitting there playing with her hands. She only did that when she was unsure about something.

It was things like that that made Anna upset. She hated seeing her sister upset about something. She walked up to Elsa, and sat down next to her. she placed a hand on her arm, causing her to jump. Elsa turned to see Anna.

"Anna…." she mumbled. Her eyes were glossy and almost looked like they were on the verge of tears.

Anna just sat there silently, waiting for her sisters explanation.

"i… I'm worried about him. I sent him on a mission with Caleb. I thought it would help him. but now… I'm worried that he is in trouble."

Anna would have screamed for joy. Her plan was working (though the two still hadn't spent enough time together to know each other; she was going to fix that one soon) because Elsa was admitting she was worried about him

But she could worry about that later. Now she had to comfort her sister.

She took Elsa's hand "listen Elsa. Ranger will be fine. He took a slash to the chest and got away. I'm sure a mission will be nothing for him"

She wanted to believe that. if only to help ease Elsa's mind.

Elsa was not convinced. She wanted t be, but bandits were dangerous. And if Ranger was in combat, who was to say that his injury wouldn't just kill him now?

She wanted…. No she needed him to return to her.

* * *

if anyone thought a high speed chase was fun, they clearly hadn't been running for there lives. Ranger and Caleb had spent the past few minutes driving around the base trying to avoid dead ends and avoid the bandits that tried to stop them. sure a swing of their sword usually worked, but both men were starting to tire and no doubt, they would soon run out of track. They needed to find the way out. The gunpowder trail would no doubt soon run out.

Caleb was amazed and horrified by Rangers plan.

He was going to blow up the entire mountain. Or at least the whole base they were in. the barrel they had was literally a powder keg. One shot and the whole trail would blow up the mountainside.

Ranger was one crazy maniac.

Caleb distantly saw light. It must have been the way out.

"Ranger, we have to get out of here soon!" he told the other man

" not yet, we need to get closer!"

there wasn't any track left. If they didn't jump out now, they were going to hit a full stop.

"Ranger its now or never!"

Caleb couldn't just jump out of the cart. Ranger was his ally. He couldn't just leave him behind.

Ranger on the other hand, kicked the barrel out of the cart then aimed his flintlock at the trail. He fired setting the barrel ablaze and causing the trail to light up.

"Caleb hold on!" he screamed.

The cart was about to reach the end of the track. Caleb braced himself to jump out as soon as he could

Only a moment later, a large boom echoed behind them and he went flying out into the open world. he landed on his front, tumbling down the mountain. He rolled to a stop. Panting he shakily stood up checking himself for injuries. Thankfully there wasn't any. He looked around. Ranger was lying nearby Caleb stiffened. From here it didn't look lie Ranger was hurt. A moment later he sat up, rubbing his head.

"ouch. Remind me never to blow something up ever again" he groaned, standing up.

the two looked at the mountain which was now a pile of rocks. The whole mountain ha crumbled in on itself thanks to the large explosion.

but at least they were alive. And they had completed their mission. Except

"why the hell would you blow them up!" Caleb yelled.

Ranger just shrugged "as opposed to what? Letting them attack us. Caleb, if we had fought them we would have lost. Besides we did are job didn't we!"

"we don't know that they would have attacked us!"

"well the captured us! I was not just going to wait to ask why."

Caleb shut up after that. Ranger wasn't going to budge on this argument. Besides that was true. They did get captured without any real reasoning behind it.

The two just turned and began walking in any direction. Caleb was a good tracker, but since he had no idea where the two ended up, well they were pretty much lost until they could find a definitive marker.

* * *

Elsa watched as the sun began to set. It had almost been a full day since Caleb and ranger had left on their mission and she was starting to get worried. Well more than she felt before hand. Ranger should have been back by now. They were supposed o do reconnaissance, not mayhem.

If they had caused any sort of trouble, then Elsa wasn't sure how to help them. she couldn't just send more guards on a wild goose chase without any real evidence of a problem. For all she knew, Ranger and Caleb could still be gathering information. She couldn't risk their safety if they weren't in any sort of danger.

She just wished that Ranger was back by now.

She groaned leaning against the balcony railing. What was wrong with her. ever since this morning Ranger was all she could think about. His face his eyes, even his touch.

Anna had told her that this was attraction, but…. Why did she feel like she wanted more.

Anna had said get to know him, but there was a little problem with that. he freaked out at any mention of his home.

That definitely put a flaw in all of her plans. If she couldn't learn about his past how could she be with him?

She needed to find some way to learn more about who he was. Her thoughts turned to the trolls. They were wise and perhaps, Grand Pabbie the troll who had once helped her and Anna out could help Ranger.

He certainly couldn't say no to Elsa on that one.

She frowned. she would need to ask Kristoff if they could see Pabbie (it was his family after all).

Could Pabbie unlock the puzzle that Ranger left for her? If his past hurt him so much. Someone needed to help him heal.

Elsa shivered, not from the cold but from the unease in her heart. Ranger was already so delicate. If he broke.. would Elsa be able to fix him.

She prayed that she could help him.

"Ranger…." She whispered feeling a tear run down her check.

* * *

Caleb and Ranger after making their way to a clearing where able to locate themselves. The north mountain was a mile away, meaning that the bandits were clearly not to far from Arendelle. It would take them about another day to get there at the rate they were going.

Ranger was no stranger to moments like this; he had spent his life traveling in such a manner. The only real danger was any wildlife or thief that may come their way.

Considering he just blew up every human they knew about, only animals would get in their way.

The two just kept walking. Neither were tired, (since they had slept while unconscious) and it would be better to just get to Arendelle while they could.

Ranger thought of Elsa and how worried she must be right now. She had seen him at his most venerable, without any attempt to hide his pain from her.

He just…. He couldn't tell her the truth. The reason his parents…

He stopped. He couldn't… he wouldn't.

Elsa…. She was the closet thing to family he had now. He felt something for her, but he didn't know exactly what it was. All he knew was that it felt so nice. It made him feel happy.

But he didn't deserve to be happy.

Such was his fate.

* * *

Elsa walked over to the stables where no doubt she would find Kristoff. He loved to stay with Sven. At least until he fell asleep. Or with Anna.

Sure enough he was just strumming on his guitar talking with Sven. He seemed so calm so happy. Even though she hadn't known him long, Kristoff was like her brother now. If he married Anna any time soon.

Well she wasn't complaining.

She made her way to the gruff mountain man. He didn't even notice her coming. He was too busy just…. Doing whatever he was doing.

Elsa sometimes envied moments like this. Anna was able to (mostly) do what she pleased as was Kristoff. Elsa had to run an entire kingdom. She wanted to do her best, but sometimes she could use a break. Its just that she would be a good queen if she took breaks whenever she wanted too.

But right now, she needed to deal with asking Kristoff about Pabbie. She stopped in front of him, clearing her throat. Kristoff stopped, finally noticing Elsa was there. He stood up, bowing to Elsa.

It would have made her laugh . Kristoff still treated her with the respect that the queen had. Elsa just didn't like it from him since he was so close to anna now. There really wasn't a need for it here.

"Queen Elsa, what can I do for you?" he asked

Elsa gave him a smile "are you planning to go see your family anytime soon?"

Kristoff frowned it wasn't like elsa to ask him questions like that. he knew about her connections with the trolls, since he knew what happened to Anna that night. But she never asked about them like that

So why was she asking about them now?

"what do you need?" he asked

Elsa sighed. She was really hoping he wouldn't ask that. but he did need an explanation so what else was she going to do. It wasn't like she could say "I just want to visit them" because unlike Kristoff she didn't have that luxury nor was she really that close to them. sure they helped her out with her powers and she was always welcome, but still….

"I have a friend. Ranger."

Kristoff nodded that was the name of the guard Anna had told him about. "you want to take him to see my family with you?" he asked

Elsa nodded "he… I cant explain it Keistoff. I don't know… but I think Pabbie can help him."

Kristoff huffed "I can take you there tomorrow. If your not busy of course. If you think Pabbie can help him, then there really shouldn't be much of an issue.

Elsa smiled. she was happy that Kristoff was willing to help her. she needed it.

Thank you" she said before walking away.

* * *

Ranger and Caleb after a several hour journey that lasted well into the night finally made it to the north mountain. Arendelle was directly below them a light in the darkness.

To Caleb it was a dream come true. After the ordeal he had just been through, he was happy to be back home.

He needed to have a talk with Elsa about Rangers behavior, though he had no qualms about actually getting out alive.

It just bothered him that after all that, Ranger didn't seem to care about the acts of murder that he just committed. To Caleb, it was just so wrong. As a guard he learned to fight, but he hated killing. He never had killed before, but he didn't want to unless absolutely necessary.

So having a partner who didn't even seem to care unnerved him immensely.

Even worse, he was Elsa's guard. He shuddered at the idea of the Queen herself being attacked. Ranger would probably end it right then and there.

Queen Elsa probably would not like that. she was a peaceful person. So learning that Ranger blew up an entire mountain with people inside probably would not sit very well with her.

However Caleb hadn't talked with his partner over the events either. He refused to talk about it he just kept silent, not having said one word to Caleb the entire time. Not that Caleb had attempted to talk either

It was going to be a long trek down the mountain. But he was ok with the silence. Better to think about his report than argue with someone the entire way down.

* * *

Queen Elsa was finally at her wits end the entire day had passed and still there ws no sign of either of her guards.

Ranger and Caleb were supposed to be back by now, but it seemed that something had gone terribly wrong.

She couldn't sleep. Not until she knew that they were safe. She just wanted Ranger back.

Anna had tried to get her to relax but there was nothing that could be done. She felt jittery and it was hard enough holding in her power as it was.

She was about to scream when Anna suddenly burst into the room "Elsa!" she screamed happily "he's back!"

Elsa didn't even wait for her to finish. She ran passed Anna and made her way down to the gates where she spotted Ranger. Without thinking she ran up to him and quickly tackled him in a giant affectionate hug.


	20. Confessions of Hate

**ok, this is probably the third to last chapter… before the biggest revelations occur so expect that soon. Also there're a couple things i want to say, but we'll do that after you read.**

* * *

Ranger stiffened as he felt Elsa hug him unlike their first hug, this was affectionate. Elsa was pouring her entire wellbeing into it. All her concern all her hope…

All her love.

It had been so long since Ranger had been hugged like this. Almost seven years. The last person to hug him was someone he had not seen since.

Since the day they died.

And now here he was being hug by a woman who had a growing place in his heart.

It felt so….

He roughly pushed Elsa away, ignoring the hurt look on her face, before running back into the castle.

He didn't even look back.

Elsa stared at Rangers retreating back. She felt fury boiling into her veins. She had just expressed her feelings in the least romantic way possible and he went from good friend to idiot jerk in all but two seconds.

What was his deal? At the slightest show of affection Ranger ran off! The kiss on the forehead, he freaked out and told her to get out. Now he just ran off without saying a word!

Why was he so afraid!

Elsa ignored Caleb completely (who was too embarrassed to say a word anyway) stomping back into the castle producing spikes whenever she walked. God Ranger was the most confusing infuriating handsome…

Stop it!

She stomped her way up to his room, swinging the door wide open! Ranger was taking off his armor. He turned, noticing Elsa and her vengeful look. She stomped into the room and slapped him across his face.

Ranger didn't even flinch.

"Can you tell me why you are so against affection! I know we kissed and you didn't freak out, but then I try and comfort you or show some amount of affection and you throw a fit! You can't do this Ranger! You have to tell me! Why are you so afraid! Why do you hide your past; why do you freak out about it!"

Elsa was screeching she was so angry. She wouldn't be surprised if the whole town heard her ranting. She didn't care she wanted answers. Ranger had kept her in the dark for far to long. She felt something for him, but because he was so withdrawn, she couldn't find out more about him.

Well that's going to end.

Rangers green eyes bored straight into her ice blue ones.

"I'm afraid because I lost someone close to me once." He said his voice void of emotion. "I'm afraid because if I grow to love you… I'll lose you too"

he took a deep breath "my past… is something I WANT to forget!." His voice turned cold and his eyes blaze with anger. He ripped off his shirt, showing the many scars that littered his body.

"Everyday I wake up, I have a reminder of the worst days of my life! The people who gave this to me!" he gestured at the cuts "didn't care about the well being of a child!"

Elsa stared at his body. The scar tissue was old and it covered nearly ever inch. Someone had done that to him and he never forgave him or her for it. He could never escape it. his nightmares…

_"Mama! Papa! Help me!"_

He had screamed because… because he was hurt, and no one had helped him.

but why…. What could a child so young have done to warrant this must hatred. This much pain. He must have.. why didn't someone help him?

he said he had lost someone close to him. Did they try and help him? Or did they die trying?

Elsa felt tears leak out of her eyes. Was this… was this all Ranger knew. Pain? He never once said of anything good in his life.

"why Ranger?" she asked him "why did this happen to you?"

Ranger scowled "because…"

He grabbed Elsa by her shoulders. She flinched but he made no move. He just leaned in and whispered in her ear

"hate is all i know." His voice was so cold that Elsa felt her blood freeze. any feelings that he had for her…. she didn't know if he just confessed to loving her. or told her that he wasn't worth it.

she scowled and without warning grabbed his face and pressed her lips to his. It was only a brief moment but she pulled away a moment later. She gazed into his eyes, searching for any love that he held for her.

but there wasn't any… she backed away, choking her sobs down her throat, before running out the door and away, her heart breaking.

* * *

Anna was walking down the hall when she heard it. Fast tapping of someone wearing heels Elsa suddenly came running down the corner, tears streaming down her face. Before Anna could tell her to stop, Elsa ran into her sending the two stumbling to the ground.

Anna felt Elsa on top of her, but didn't care. All she cared about right now was asking what had happened to her older sister. she sat up, causing Elsa to tumble backward. Thankfully she ended up sitting on her knees.

Anna caught a good look at her face. Elsa's face was flushed and her eyes were red.

She had been crying and by the looks of it someone had hurt her really bad. Emotionally any way. Anna's eyes hardened. Oh that was it! Ranger was going to get it this time. Anna knew that Elsa had gone to see him, so who else could have done it.

She took Elsa too her room and got her some hot chocolate before tucking her in.

However, Anna couldn't bare the thought of leaving Elsa alone, so she climbed into bed with her snuggling at her side.

Ranger could wait until the morning.

* * *

Ranger punched the pillow in his room he was so mad! Why had Elsa have to ask him about his past!

He had suffered so much. he just wanted to forget it. Elsa could never know.

He hadn't told her everything. The reason he had been hurt the way he was.

But that reason… was why he was still alive.

He sighed collapsing on his bed. He couldn't tell Elsa the truth. Would she understand? Probably, but he couldn't bear to see that look on her face. The look of shock distrust fear.

He had seen it all, far too many times. No one helped him after that. They had all left him…

Or they had all been killed….

He glanced at the sword hanging on the wall. The sword he had carried all these years. The only thing he had taken with him on this journey.

The sword had belonged to his master. Or rather some of the stone it held had belonged to his master. The glistening gems stared back at him, colors of red, blue and green.

"Master…. I can't do it… you were the only one who ever looked out for me…. And even you… there's nothing left in my heart… Elsa… I can't bear to lose her too. If she knew like my parents knew… I couldn't tell you… my name… my past…. All of it… it means nothing to me. No one will understand… I'm…"

He whispered the phrase he had heard so many times before. the phrase that had been the source of his pain.

His parents called him that. his village had called him that.

And he suffered for it.

* * *

The next morning Caleb arrived at Elsa's study. He still had to talk to her about Rangers behavior the previous night. He politely knocked.

"Come in!" Elsa called

Caleb walked into the room. he bowed to Elsa before shutting the door behind him.

"Your majesty, I need to talk to you about yesterday."

Elsa stiffened. Caleb would not dare bring up what happened last night. She was still mad as it was. She wasn't even sure she wanted to talk about Ranger right now. her head was spinning and her heart was pounding

He had somewhat confessed to loving her and rejected her all at the same time.

Well at least he opened up a little bit.

But if she broke him? Would he even forgive her for it.

"While we were on our mission. Something strange happened to Ranger."

Elsa sighed with relief. Good he wasn't going to talk about her hugging Ranger. Even if he could, it wasn't any of his business anyway. she could have him locked up for even trying to suggest it.

"while we were captured we were chained, unbelievably tight. Solid steel. It would have been impossible to break them. But Ranger. He startled a guard and broke his neck. Un chained, I might add. He somehow got out and broke the guard neck. "

Elsa stared at Caleb "he broke free first?" she asked

Caleb nodded "I don't know how he just did." He said.

Elsa rubbed her forehead. Even more questions to ask. Great. This just kept getting better and better.

Elsa would need to speak to ranger again about this. That is he was up to talking to her again.

Little did they knew, another guard was listening in on them

* * *

The guard, named Tyrone walked down to the dungeon where he met with Elias. Tyrone was one of Elias most loyal lieutenants. The two had been friends for years.

The two had ben meeting secretly over the past couple of days. Elias hated Ranger with a passion. Tyrone wanted Elias back on the top spot. By working together (along with several other guards unhappy with Elias's current situation, they could hopefully return things to the way they used to be

"Elias… Ranger is hiding something."

Elias looked up. "Why have you come to tell me that? if he is hiding something, I need to know what it is!" he snapped

Tyrone frowned. "I do not know, Elis. Whatever it was. There were no witnesses left alive. He snapped someone's neck for it, apparently."

Elias's grimace deepened. There was more to this story. He just needed to find out.

"Find out about anyone in the kingdom who knows about Ranger. If we can find someway… we might be able to get him to reveal it."

Tyrone grinned "of course.

* * *

Ranger was practicing sword play in the guard training area when Anna walked in. she had been looking for Ranger for the past few minutes (she had woken up late like she usually did.) and still needed to talk to him about what he had said to Elsa

She stomped up to him. Ranger turned to look at her. She reached up and punched him straight in his face.

Only succeeding in causing her self pain. She pulled her hand away, rubbing her now smarting hand

Ranger chuckled. The sisters were funny. One slapped him and one punched him. Neither of them really hurt (they weren't that strong to begin with and he had taken far worse hits before)

But either way, he guessed he was supposed to just deal with it until he was able to figure out why everyone wanted to hurt him.

"any reason you and Elsa want to cause me pain Anna?" he asked with an infuriatingly smug grin.

Anna scowled at him. She was not in the mood foe whatever game he was playing right now. He had said something to Elsa and she wanted to find out what it was.

Ranger…. She liked Ranger and wanted him to like Elsa, but now? She wanted him to stop it with whatever it was that bothered him.

"I want you to apologize to Elsa!" she screamed. "Whatever you said to her really hurt her and listen mister!" she pointed a finger at him "I don't know whats going on between you two, but you need to get along. That means no more making her sad! Got it!"

Ranger chuckled. Anna was not intimidating at least to him. but he knew she was right. he did hurt her. and he would have to apologize.

"alright." He said to Anna

without another word. He left the training room to go shower.

* * *

meanwhile, after meeting with Caleb, Elsa found herself back at the stables, where she planned to meet with Kristoff. he had been preparing for the trip to the trolls that Elsa wanted them to take.

Anna of course would be joining them and olaf too (basically it was a family affair.) Ranger would probably express shock at the existence of the trolls but if there was a chance he could talk to Pabbie… maybe he could finally yell them to reason he still hurt.

The scars that littered his body told a story, but the meaning behind it. Elsa just wanted to help him.

Apparently only one other person may have done that. well Elsa was going to make sure that no one would ever have to help him again (she would ease his pain)

Kristoff had packed some days supplies, since it was going to take a while to get to the trolls (it had taken a few hours on horse back, but Sven was carrying more than that)

Kristoff noticed Elsa coming towards him "your majesty… Elsa. Everything is all packed we just need everyone here."

Elsa nodded "olaf is with Sven right?" the two were good friends

.

Kristoff nodded "that means we just need feistypants and your guard." He said "um Elsa… do you think Ranger is ready? I mean, you said that Pabbie might be able to help him, but from what you told me the other night…

Elsa sighed. Kristoff I honestly do not know what to think. Ranger is a man in pain. I don't think anyone has helped him in a long time. But he won't listen to me, or anyone. Pabbie might be able to convince him to show us.

Kristoff frowned. he didn't believe that Ranger would want to show them. he hadn't told Elsa, who was of course deeply concerned (he could tell by the look on her face.)

He didn't know if Elsa liked the guy (they had yet to meet) but Elsa rarely showed concern for a complete stranger. It was very odd to kristoff. then again his companion was a reindeer and he was dating the princess, so Elsa falling in love was not the strangest thing that could happen to him in his life

But he wasn't going to argue with the queen, so he just turned back to the sleigh an made sure that it would be ready for the long trip back to his family.

* * *

Anna was the second person to meet by the sleigh. She sat next to Elsa (who was just waiting there.) Ranger had yet to arrive, and clearly he had not apologized like Anna wanted him too because he was busy doing whatever he was doing.

That being said, Anna wanted to talk to Elsa about something.

"hey Elsa… the winter ball is being held in two weeks right?"

the winter ball was an annual event that had been done before the castle was closed by Adgar. Now that Elsa had the castle gates opened he was going to have some sort of event going on. What could be more perfect for the occasion than the winter ball?

Elsa nodded. The winter ball was to be held in the first week of December. Since Elsa's birthday and Christmas were to close together, the ball was going to be held long before hand so that Anna could plan a private party for Elsa.

To be honest Elsa was half excited about the ball. There were going to be suitors vying for her hand no doubt. But Elsa was only looking for one man to be at that dance.

As her personal guard, Ranger would have no choice but to attend. If he didn't make a scene of course. Elsa blushed at the idea of him dancing with her (if he knew how to dance that was)

Unfortunately, Anna noticed. She gave a cheeky grin "you want to dance with Ranger, don't you?"

Elsa sighed there was no point in trying to argue with Anna at this point. "yes Anna." she said quietly.

Anna had succeeded in trying to get them together (elsa didn't really know that) but Rangers resistance was making it very difficult.

Elsa hated to admit it but she was the first to fall. She had been afraid, but she couldn't help it. physically, Ranger was very attractive, so there was nothing wrong with that, but Elsa wanted to get to know the man behind the cocky attitude and the healed scars

He was just making it very difficult to do so.

But hopefully he would talk soon.

* * *

Ranger, freshly showered and clean was the final person to arrive. He was looking for Elsa, and was surprised when he learned that she was here of all places (he had never once seen her out here in the past few days.

He walked up to Elsa and sat opposite to Anna. he could tell Anna was giving him a death glare. he still needed to apologize to Elsa and Anna wanted him to do it (he just wasn't while they weren't alone.)

Still he now had to question why Elsa was out here in the first place. She was always so busy in the castle, being out here with a guy and a reindeer just struck him as odd.

Kristoff got Sven and tied him to the sleigh. Then the four of them (and Olaf jumped into the sleigh)

As they were seated Elsa and Ranger sat next to each other. They refused to look at the other since they were both concerned about last night.

However Ranger whispered to her "I'm sorry"

Elsa was shocked that he would say that but smiled.

* * *

**If i may, i have a bit of a confession to make. i would like an intimate scene between Ranger and Elsa at ****some point. the thing is i feel uncomfortable writing such things. does anyone have any tips, or maybe someone i colds talk to about writing one for me? its not that important, but i'm just curious.**

**thanks.**

**also check out a new story i made. if you like of course. its called "a moment in the sunset". its not a frozen story, but it is a future idea i'm considering. **


	21. Separation

** You are going to hate me for this, but it has to be done**

* * *

The trip was quiet to say the least. Neither the men nor the woman said much. There really wasn't much to be said. Anna had only introduced Kristoff and Ranger (Olaf had hugged him much to his annoyance) but the trip didn't spark a large amount of conversation

Anna was to busy silently flirting with Kristoff (Elsa didn't like seeing him kiss Anna in her presence) and Elsa and Ranger were silently trying to ignore it.

Elsa was still slightly irked by Rangers bipolar attitude. One minute some calm confident smug… well man. The next he was either crying of screaming in anger. It was just so confusing.

Her mind had not yet forgotten the scars that had littered his body, nor the words that had been said "the people who gave this to me didn't care about the well being of a child!"

Her stomach churned. Someone had hurt him so badly that he was very traumatized to the point where even mentioning it caused a violent reaction. It must have taken a lot for him just to tell her that much.

She hadn't had a stellar childhood herself, being locked in her room for most of her life because of the advice of the trolls. They were smart, but their advice wasn't really helpful, considering it took a decade just to figure out exactly how she could control her powers.

So maybe trying to get them to help Ranger wasn't exactly the best of ideas. For one he might not want help, and he had no idea where they were going anyway.

So it might not end as well as she might want it too.

But she so desperately wanted to help him.

She knew trauma when she saw it, and judging by his reaction, he had never healed from it. He never mentioned anyone helping him, only that his parents never helped him, judging from his reactions in his nightmares.

Just what had happened was the question. And why of course.

If the trolls could help him, he might just be able to heal.

Elsa knew it was driving her crazy, but she did like him. even if he was who he was. She had kissed him for crying out loud (well one was an accident but still)! and Ranger, despite his aloofness had said during his episode that he couldn't care about someone, because he had lost someone important.

Which meant there was at least the chance he did like her, he was just to afraid to admit it

Just like she was. She wasn't going to say that she loved him; they didn't even have a romantic relationship. There really wasn't any way they could be in one anyway.

He wasn't a king or prince.

Then again she didn't know who he was! The whole point of visiting the trolls was to get him to talk to them so they could help him heal. That is if he actually listened to him.

She didn't know what else to do. He refused to talk to her, unless he was angry. And she didn't want to see him angry. If this was the only way to break his shell without breaking him then she was going to take it.

She stared at him. he was looking off into the forest, ignoring the romance going on in front of him (and the talking snowman). She reached over a grabbed his free hand, squeezing it lightly.

He stiffened, before turning to Elsa. His eyes were filled with surprise, and his cheeks were red. He could tell Elsa's and was on his own. He bit his lip, staring directly into Elsa's eyes.

Elsa felt her breath hitch. His eyes were filled with something had she never seen in them before. Happiness, gratefulness, and a hint of… desire?

Elsa's own cheeks turned pink. She had never seen a look like that, let alone directed at her.

She wasn't really sure what to say or do. She just continued to gaze into his eyes. Her eyes moved to his lips. The lips that she had kissed, still wanted to kiss.

Not that she was going to. For crying out loud, Anna was already under the impression that they liked each other! She did not need to confirm it in front of Anna. she didn't like Kristoff kissing her sister as it was. Now Anna had no real reason to complain if it happened otherwise, but still if Elsa was going to kiss Ranger, she was going to do it when they had some privacy!

She asked Anna for that much at least. As well as nothing beyond kissing for a few years. Anna was a smart girl, she definitely wouldn't be crazy enough to go that far, nor would Kristoff.

Not that she wouldn't mind children, just not at the moment.

But what about Ranger. Her council would never allow it. but she didn't care. Blood didn't matter. Royal or not it was her choice. Not her councils.

Ranger gave her a grin "feeling warm, your majesty?" he said softly.

Elsa stopped. He was flirting with her again wasn't he? Still he needed and answer she smiled "its almost winter Ranger! How could I be warm?"

He just chuckled. She knew he was just teasing her.

Before either could continue speaking Ana turned around, "So Elsa, you happy about this little road trip?"

Elsa turned to Anna, thankful she wasn't commenting on her hand holding (if she hadn't noticed) she did not want to get into a sisterly argument. Especially if Ranger was right next to her.

"She gave Anna a smile "yes Anna"

Anna grinned "good because we're having a picnic after we're done!" she pulled out a small basket, filled no doubt with what Anna would love to eat. Well at least she knew that she and Kristoff liked it to.

Hopefully Ranger loved chocolate.

Kristoff continued driving the sled towards the home of the trolls. He still wasn't sure as to why Elsa wanted the trolls to meet her new guard; she hadn't told him. Well all he could say was that she had her reasons.

But if she wanted to see the trolls on her own, that meant it was serious.

Still it was rather odd a man whom Elsa didn't even know worried her enough to go visit the trolls? They had helped Elsa in the past, when Anna's head had been frozen as well as when her heart was frozen, but what could be more serious than that. His family certainly wasn't a therapy group.

Well he wasn't going to argue with her. She was the queen after all. As well the trolls would be happy to see them. They absolutely loved whenever Kristoff brought Anna

He could only imagine how they would feel when Elsa was the one who brought a special friend over.

He could hear them already.

* * *

Kai and Gerda were going over the last few details for the upcoming winter ball. The ball was several weeks away, but there was so much to do they needed supplies, the guest list, everything still needed to be prepared.

This was the first ball since the coronation. Since even that one couldn't go well, they needed this one to go well. So much was riding on this. Like a potential suitor. So many were coming for Elsa's hands.

But being like their parents, so of them were concerned. Elsa's beauty was well known, but so were her powers. No doubt some of the suitors would be after her for that.

They wanted Elsa to marry someone for love, someone who could look past the potential for her powers and help her with the duties of her kingdom.

Was that too much to ask for?

In some ways it would be. Some kings and princes were arrogant, no doubt about that. But Elsa wasn't stupid. If they showed the slightest hint of just wanting Elsa's power, then it was goodbye. Elsa was a good judge of character.

Unfortunately that didn't mean some people wouldn't try.

Kai sighed putting down the final document. Everything appeared to be in order; they just needed to send word out to the neighboring kingdom for some assistance.

Arendelle had some of the supplies, but it would still need some things that it didn't have. Thankfully all the kingdoms nearby were friendly enough.

Gerda noticed Kai's sigh, "Kai, is something wrong?" she asked.

The old man looked at his life long friend "its Elsa, Gerda "she like a daughter to me, just like she is too you. I'm not exactly going to enjoy all the suitors coming."

Gerda smiled sadly. Elsa had long since become a woman, but Kai still saw her as his little girl. As children Kai and Gerda had played with the young princesses on many occasions, watching over them whenever needed by the king and queen. They were close to them.

After the untimely death of the monarchs Kai and Gerda continued to watch over the young princesses, as their parents would have wanted them to.

Even now they worried about her. There were so many good men in the kingdom that Elsa could get to know and potentially married to, but considering the fact it was expected for her to mrry someone of royal blood, and considering her powers were well known, they weren't exactly confident in the fact suitors were coming.

Unfortunately, it would have to be done, much to their dismay.

But it would be nice to have little grandchildren running around again someday. They just wanted Elsa to be happy as well. How could she do that if everyone was after her powers? Hopefully there would be some nice guys there to win over Elsa's hand in marriage.

Gerda walked over to Kai and took his hand "it's going to be ok Kai" she told him

It needed to be ok.

* * *

Meanwhile Tyrone entered the dungeon, He had been atoundf town in the past few hours and he had cone up with some very interesting information. Someone had known the Queens new guard. Apparently he was out of town and he had spent some time with them.

Elias would be pleased to hear about that.

He made his way over to Elias cell.

"Captain… I found someone.

Elias stared at his old friend. Hopefully, Tyrone wasn't coming back to him with some useless information that wasn't needed whatsoever. He needed facts in order to carry out his plan.

"what do you want?" he growled

Tyrone bit his lip "a old man and a girl in the town. They housed Ranger for a few weeks. They don't know where he came from, but there may be some use for them"

Elias grinned evilly "have to troops been briefed."

Tyrone returned the grin. Some of the guard's didn't like Caleb, despite his short time as captain, nor were they happy about Elias being demoted.

"they have master. We will use the ball as a distraction."

Elias grinned the Queens ball would be the perfect time to enact his revenge. Ranger would suffer for his insolence.

Then, Elsa would be his

* * *

Meanwhile Kristoff and the others were continuing the trip to the trolls. It was quite the journey; it had taken a while to get there on foot from the north mountain; it would still take them a while on a sled from Arendelle since the distance was a little greater than the north mountain.

Still no one was complaining. They were going to have a short talk with Grand pabbie and then at Anna's request they were going to have a picnic. Well it was going to be a very happy day to say the least.

The others were sitting I silence. The talking had ceased a while ago. Now they were just in some sense of silence.

"We are almost there, kristoff said "maybe within the next half hour or so." They had reached a small clearing.

"Wait!" Ranger cried. Sven stopped. There was something wrong. He could feel it in the air. There was…

Suddenly an arrow flew from the trees and struck Elsa in the shoulder.

"Argh!" she screamed doubling over, blood seeping down her dress.

"Elsa!" Anna screamed reaching over the sled to grab her sister. Ranger turned and spotted the shooter. Its apparel…. It was from the same group of bandits that he had blown up! had they been waiting for them this whole time?

Kristoff turned to Sven "Sven go!"

The reindeer didn't need to be told twice, he took off into the trees, running in any direction that he could.

Another arrow flew out of the trees, barely missing the sled. Ranger covered Elsa, protecting her, While Kristoff grabbed Anna and tried doing the same. The arrows just kept coming, barely missing them.

Kristoff steered Sven away from the trees, however what he didn't realize was he was running directly and a cliff a cliff. "Whoa!" he screamed, grabbing the sled and Anna for balance. Sven turned sharply, causing the back of the sled to fall off the cliff.

Elsa, still wounded and unprepared slipped out of the sled, starting a fast decent down to the river.

"ELSA!" Within an instant Ranger jumped out of the sled, reaching for the wounded snow queen.

"NO!" Anna screamed as she watched her older sister fall. She attempted to follow but Kristoff grabbed her and Sven managed to pull them to safety, speeding off into the forest, leaving them behind

Anna was hyperventilating the image of her sister falling off the cliff burnt into her brain. It was impossible it just couldn't be possible. Elsa had been shot and then fell off a cliff. No it couldn't be possible. She was here in the back of the sled and happily laughing as they were on their way to visit the trolls.

But there was no laughing. Elsa was not there. She was gone. As was Ranger. Ranger had fallen off too, jumping after her sister, trying his best to reach her. well she could be happy that he was trying to protect her sister.

The problem was she didn't know whether or not they were even alive. They had fallen off a very large and steep cliff down into the river below. No one could survive that. then again she hadn't been looking. Kristoff had tried to protect her from suffering the same fate.

Anna covered her mouth choking on her sobs. Elsa couldn't be gone. She was the only family she had left. If she was dead….

Tears leaked from her eyes and she curled up into a ball

"Elsa! Elsa!" she screamed. No it wasn't possible. Losing control of her emotions she turned to Kristoff and began punching him. he just let her ignoring the pain that he felt. It was nothing compared to the pain he felt in his heart, nor the pain Anna was feeling. Elsa could be dead for all they knew.

Olaf climbed onto Anna's lap, giving her a hug, trying to make her feel better. Anna ignored it, continually punching Kristoff.

"you left her! you left her! she's dead! Dead! do you here me! DEAD!" she collapsed into a fit of sobs, crying her heart out. She hadn't felt like this in three years, not since the day she learned her parents had died.

And now Elsa was gone. It just couldn't be true! No No!

Kristoff steered in silence.

* * *

Kristoff finally made it to the trolls. The bandits hadn't followed them since Ranger and Elsa fell. Whatever they were after, they must have got it. perhaps the bandits thought they had invaded their territory. it was possible of course.

But that didn't matter. They were gone. Anna was safe and alive. If you could call being heartbroken alive. She wasn't going to get over this anytime soon, if at all. Which was probably going to be the case.

How was Anna going to break this to the kingdom? Elsa, so young and early into her reign as Queen, murdered by a group of bandits. They would be devastated. Anna would have to take on the role as Queen. She was capable of course, despite her clumsy demeanor. She would have to be. She was all that Arendelle had left now.

The Trolls weren't going to be any happier about this either. They were quite the happy nunch and now they would find out a very good friend of Kristoff ands a young girl they liked was now gone, perhaps dead.

Of course Kristoff didn't want to believe this. he was hoping praying that Elsa was alive and well. after dropping Anna off at the trolls (she certainly wasn't in any condition to be going anywhere right now) he was going to go after her.

He made his way into the trolls sanctuary, ring Sven to a stop. Sven sat down, feeling sad after the events that had occurred earlier. Kristoff hopped out of the sled and moved to the other side, grabbing Anna, carrying her bridal style into his arms. She didn't resist. Olaf hopped out, following Kristoff.

"Guys? Grand Pabbie?! " he screamed "please! Help" he screamed. A moment later the trolls rolled into a circle surrounding Kristoff. hoever, before they could break into a happy dance, they sw the look on his face and the tears tat were currently streaming down Anna's.

one of the spoke "what happened"

Kristoff frowned "we were attacked on the way here. Elsa and a friend… we don't know… they're just gone"

The trolls were silent as Kristoff lowered Anna onto the ground "olaf" he said to the snow man. "Watch her" he made his way back to Sven and hopped onto him, leaving the sled. He ran off into the night.

* * *

**Will Everything turn out ok? Stay tuned for more.**


	22. Passion

**Well Elsa and Ranger are off in worlds unknown and Anna is hysteric. Lets fix that shall we?**

* * *

Meanwhile, several miles down stream, a hand reached out from under the water and grabbed on to the nearest thing it could reach, thankfully being a sturdy vine.

The hand grabbed it and pulled revealing a very wet and very exhausted Ranger. He gasped for air, having been pulled under the water one too many times during this trip.

Why did Elsa have to fall? She seriously couldn't hold on could she? He pulled his arm up, revealing Elsa, still unconscious from the shock, but she was breathing. He heaved her up and forward, getting her onto the land bank. With one last burst of strength, Ranger managed to pull himself onto the shore as well, before collapsing beside Elsa. He was so tired he couldn't even turn over. He let out a painful laugh. They were alive… after a fall straight down into a river (which he took the brunt of after reaching Elsa) being washed over several miles away and having no strength left, Ranger was thankful to say that he was alive

He looked over at Elsa. He chest was moving, so she was alive. It was a shame that she was unconscious.

They needed to find shelter. There wasn't much good in trying to stay out in the open. Elsa was unconscious and he didn't know his way back to Arendelle. They were going to need each other if they wanted to get out of this situation alive.

Plus there were any assortment of animals that would want to eat them. Not to mention the bandits from before.

Elsa was still bleeding though thankfully the arrow was gone.

He needed to find a way to stop the bleeding or they were going to have some serious problems. Ranger grabbed a piece of his shirt, ripped it off and dragged himself over to Elsa. He ripped opened the left shoulder of her dress, revealing her bra, and wrapped the cloth around her shoulder.

It would have to do for the time being. He needed to close the wound, but he couldn't do it here. There wasn't anything he could use to close the wound, nor hide Elsa should she start screaming (which she would no doubt do once she woke up)

He forced himself into a standing position, wobbling briefly. He felt weak and it was taking all his strength just to stand. How he would be able to carry Elsa (sure she wasn't exactly heavy, but the added weight would pose a small problem given his weakened state.

But he needed to take care of Elsa otherwise she would die. He bent down and pulled Elsa over his shoulders.

Ok maybe this was a bad idea. He stood up again, before hobbling in a random direction. He had to start somewhere of course.

* * *

Meanwhile Kristoff and Sven returned to the cliff. He wasn't exactly where they were when he fell (if the bandits were still there it was too dangerous to go back.), but it was close enough. The river would have washed them down in this direction anyway. But there was no sign of a disturbance in the water (and it was too far anyway)

It would take him all night to get down there. Even if he could get down there, there was no way he would be able to find them all on his own, not top mention there was unfortunately a storm coming. He could see the clouds I the distance.

He sighed. He would have to wait until the morning in order to get down there. The storm would make climbing far too dangerous and would prove hazardous even if he managed to get don there before the storm hit.

He grit his teeth. Anna was not going to enjoy this at all. She was hysterical just from the fact Elsa was missing (and possibly dead) but to return without any evidence. It would destroy her.

But there wasn't any choice. With that storm coming he would have to suspend the search until later.

With a heavy heart he pulled Sven back. They went back to the troll haven. He was going to have to have a very long talk with Anna. He was not looking forward to it.

* * *

Kai looked over the city, in the direction that the trolls were. Elsa had told him that she was going there for some reason (he assumed that it was in order to visit, since Anna was going along with the ice harvester she was dating.) but he was growing concerned about the storm clouds that were settling over the north mountain. It looked like a heavy rain, perhaps snow storm. It was almost December after all.

Elsa may have power over snow, but if it was raining she wouldn't be able to control. It meant that she was pretty much useless. That being said if Anna or any of the others were with her it would be too dangerous for them. Meaning that they were pretty much stranded.

They shouldn't have gone out.

Anna holds onto to her cloak shaking very violently, her sobs racking her whole body. She couldn't stop thinking about the image of Elsa falling off the cliff. Her dear older sister was wounded by an arrow and fell off a cliff. Off a cliff!

The only hope that she had was that Ranger had managed to save her. But if he failed… they could both be dead.

She couldn't bare that. She had lost Elsa once. To not know if she was ok…

She curled up in a ball, crying. The trolls curled around her trying to comfort her, but they knew that it was of no use. Elsa was the only family Anna had.

Even Olaf, who was usually as happy as could be was standing there with a deep frown, his eyes filled with sadness. Elsa was like a mother to him (since she had created him) . now she was gone…

Even that guy that was with her, Olaf didn't really know him very well, but he hated it when nice people died. He had been so scared that he had covered his eyes, but he heard Anna screaming when Elsa had fallen.

What now? they surely couldn't return to Arendelle (even though he did have a garden to attend too) without Elsa. She was the queen. The Queen needed to run her kingdom.

He sat next to Anna patting her shoulder. He knew it was useless, but he didn't know what else he could do. He had no experience with the loss of someone (honestly he didn't even know how it worked). But he did know that comfort was a good thing. Anna needed a lot of it.

But she was beyond comfort. She was still crying. Nothing was getting through to her.

A loud rumble crashed overhead. Olaf looked up. There were storm clouds above them. How perfect was it?

Elsa woke up feeling fuzzy. Her body was aching and her shoulder was burning with pain. She felt sluggish; her body was refusing to listen to her. She tried to open her eyes, but they were heavy.

What had happened? She couldn't remember where she was. And since her eyes weren't opening, she had no idea where she was anyway.

She tried to get up, but it was proving impossible.

"I wouldn't get up if I were you."

That voice… it was Ranger. She opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She felt a hand on her forehead.

"Easy… you took quite a fall and lost a lot of blood. I had to stabilize the wound and cauterize it. it wasn't a pretty sight. Be glad you didn't wake up." his voice was soft, but she could here the smile in his voice.

Elsa would have smiled, but it was proving impossible just as much as her eyes were. She felt him grasp her hand rubbing it softly "I'm just glad your alright"

Elsa felt herself dip back into unconsciousness.

* * *

Kristoff held his head down as he finally returned to the trolls. Nothing appeared to have changed. Anna was curled up into a ball hiccupping. It appeared that she had stopped crying, probably because there were no tears left anyway.

He was silent. How was he supposed to tell Anna that Elsa was probably washed out to sea by now? He had spent so much time walking along the cliff, looking for any sign of them, but he found nothing. If they had managed to get out of the river, there was no way he could follow them because of the fact the storm was nearly right over them.

If they were out in the storm, it would make finding them more difficult.

Kristoff dismounted Sven and made his way over to Anna. He sat down next to her, wrapping an arm around her. Anna stiffened. She was beyond any sort of comfort.

"Anna we need to find shelter. There is a storm coming in. we can't be out in it"

Anna turned her head, giving Kristoff a glare that would make most people flee in terror. Kristoff just sat there paralyzed, looking directly into Anna's hateful glare.

"there is already a storm coming Kristoff Bjorgman! My sister is dead! DEAD! Ranger is gone! Because we had to leave and go straight into bandit territory! I can't even recover her body because it fell into the river! Do you know what that's like! I can't even give her a proper burial! She died like out parents did! Do you have any idea how that felt like!"

Kristoff shuddered unnerved by Anna's rant. She was right Elsa was the only family that Anna had left and now they couldn't even confirm if she was dead because they didn't have a body!

He supposed he didn't know how it felt. He had lost his parents so young and the trolls had raised him since then; so much so that they were his family.

But Anna had no one else. Kai and Gerda had helped out; they were family of course, but Elsa was everything to Anna.

He bit his lip "Anna I'm sorry. I wish there was something I could do-"

Anna pushed Kristoff away, gritting her teeth in rage "you want to help! Get out there and find her!"

She punched him in the face before storming off to the others side of the haven.

* * *

Elsa woke up once again to the sound of crashing thunder and the sound of rain outside. Her body felt stronger and she was finally able to open her eyes. She found herself staring at the ceiling of a cave. She felt warm. She turned her head and found herself staring at a fire. She vaguely recalled Ranger telling her to cauterize a wound.

She tried to sit up, but she only made it as far as her elbow before she cried out in pain. Her shoulder was enflamed with pain. It was so painful that it forced her to lie back down to feel comfortable.

She strained her mind. Her shoulder had been hit by an arrow. That must be the reason her shoulder was throbbing, ass well as the fact that Ranger had cauterized the wound.

Wait a second? He burned her? She snapped her neck to look at her shoulder (which she noticed with a blush) was wrapped in what looked like Rangers shirt with a portion of her dress ripped off, revealing her bra.

She looked around. From her position on the floor she couldn't tell where he was.

"Ranger…" she whispered. Her voice was soft, so soft that it came out like a whisper. She couldn't speak any louder. She just felt so exhausted.

Thankfully her voice was heard. Ranger appeared above her, giving her a smile. "Elsa…"

Elsa smiled back "can you help me up?" she asked him. She wanted to get up, but between the fact she still felt weak and there was the pain in her shoulder, she still couldn't get up.

She felt Rangers hands sneak under her back and legs, and he eased her up. She hissed in pain, but a moment later she felt herself relax against the wall. It wasn't ideal, but it was better than lying on the floor.

She stared at Ranger who was giving her a smile. "I was worried… you've been out for a few hours. I couldn't leave you until you woke up."

Elsa felt her heart flutter. He had stood vigil over her. She smiled, her cheeks going pink.

She looked at her shoulder "what happened?"

Ranger frowned. "Bandits. They attacked us. You got hit. You fell off the sled."

Elsa bit her lip. She didn't really remember. She tried to remember and the only thing she could remember was…

Anna calling her name.

Then her eyes widened. "Anna!" she said. Anna! Was she ok? She tried to scramble to her feet, but her shoulder wound kept her from moving.

"Anna's ok!" Ranger cried

Elsa ignored him and she had every right. He honestly didn't know what had happened to them he had jumped off of the sled.

"besides we can't go out!" he told her. he gestured to the front of the cave. The rain was still going on strong. They weren't going anywhere

Elsa sighed her heart racing. Where was Anna? she couldn't be out in this storm

Ranger sighed "its almost dark. Get some sleep. We'll leave in the morning."

Elsa leaned back and closed her eyes. She still felt tired, and Ranger was right. There was no telling when the storm was over, and they needed all the strength they could muster.

She drifted off almost instantly.

* * *

she felt wet and cold, unable to breath. Her body wasn't responding to her wishes. She felt heave and her stomach was clenched. She opened her mouth to scream but nothing came out.

Her shoulder was burning and she felt something was stuck in it. A moment later there was a rush of water and the object in her shoulder was ripped out, causing her to groan in pain.. her head exited the water and she gasped for air, but her head was almost submerged immediately afterward.

Elsa gasped as she burst into a blissful awakening, she was shaking and her breath was coming out in short gaps. Her body felt sticky with cold sweat and her mouth felt dry.

She looked around and saw Ranger sleeping peacefully on the floor. It was surprising. Most times she had seen him sleeping he was screaming about his parents.

The sight of him peacefully sleeping made her heart melt.

Gingerly she slipped to the floor and crawled over to him, snuggling into his chest, wrapping an arm around him.

He felt so warm. It made her feel safe. Her cheeks turned pink. She couldn't believe out of all the things she could be doing she was cuddling with the man she had feelings for.

She gave a sigh and once again drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Ranger awoke much later. Something was different. He didn't have a nightmare. He always had nightmares. He couldn't explain it,

What was different? He felt something curled on him like a blanket.

To his surprise he found Elsa at his side, curled around him with a happy smile on her beautiful face.

Ranger felt himself blush a dark red. What had happened? Elsa was not usually this.. touchy.

Elsa must have felt him shift because her eyes opened. She gave him a smile. She was happy to wake up beside him. She didn't care that he found her like this

"Ranger?" she asked sleepily

Ranger sat up looking away from the Queen.

Could he explain to her his nightmares?

"I was only five years old… my parents… they kept me in the house… I was never allowed outside."

His voice was worn and broken. Elsa was shocked. He never sounded like this.

"one day I broke out. I met up with some kids. They were playing a game. I wanted to join in, but I didn't know the rules. They started making fun of me. I remember be angry and I tried to walk away, but then….

Elsa sat there listening to every word.

I don't remember much, but I remember being angry and seeing red. The next thing I remember… was some of the kids lying dead at my feet."

Elsa gasped. "You killed them?"

Ranger grimaced "I don't know how…. They were a lot bigger than I was and…

He stopped. His eyes watered and he began to cry silently.

"I was arrested and sent to a mental institution outside the village I lived in. I spent the next two years in the prison, being tortured every day. They told me that it was for my own good."

Ranger touched one of the scars that littered his arm "it hurt every day. They barely fed me, only hit me….

Elsa sat up, feeling her eyes water. He was… a killer? At only five years old?

What could have happened? he said he couldn't remember.

But… she didn't care. She reached our and grasped his shoulder.

He turned to stare at her

"I'm so sorry…" she said. Her voice broke and she cried

"So much pain…"

"Pain can be controlled.. You just have to disconnect It." he said emotionlessly

"So you feel nothing!" Elsa accused

"I lost everything Elsa. I can't bear to feel like that again. But then…. I met you.. Your face… I memorized every line, every curve…"

he turned to look at her "I… I love you…."

Elsa gasped. He confessed…. He loved her….

Before she could utter a word, he stood up and walked towards the back of the cave, punching the wall. Elsa stood up and walked to him putting a hand on his shoulder

"I shouldn't have said that"

he grabbed his arm and turned him toward her. she kissed his lips, then pulled back staring at him in the eyes. They could see nothing but love and desire. They kissed again, this time filled with more passion.

Ranger lowered Elsa to the floor.

* * *

**Well now we know why a certain man is a little upset over his past… or do we? why did he kill them? there is more to know… but you won't know that for now.**

**as for an intimate scene, it might take some time, but I am certain it will be uploaded.**

**if you have any thoughts leave them. it has only begun**


	23. Hope

**Well Folks… let me just say i want to thank each and every one of you for helping me bring this story to life. everyone who read this has my eternal thanks. so go write your own story and read some others! make your day happier than it already is!**

**Read on!**

* * *

Elsa woke on top of Ranger, naked as the day she was born. She felt stiff and tender, not exactly sure what to make of it. Then memories of the night before flooded her mind and her face flushed a deep dark red. What had she been thinking? She had allowed her emotions to take over her, guiding her every action. She had done things. Things that felt good that made her happy.

But what if… Elsa had no experience with intimacy, so while she knew the risks, she didn't know what would happen now. Only time would tell. Speaking of time, Anna was going to kill her. All that time of making sure Anna and Kristoff didn't do what she just did went out the window last night. She had abandoned any morals she had, all replaced with passion and lust, with the man she loved.

If Anna found out, she was going to go nuts over it.

But Elsa didn't care. She traced circles on Rangers bare chest. It was her choice. Besides Anna was younger and far less careful right? Better to not repeat the same mistakes she had right?

Besides for the first time, ranger seemed happy, like there was nothing that could ever ruin the moment for him. After what she learned about him last night, she couldn't exactly blame him. Killed at the age of five, tortured and beaten in a mental asylum for two years. No wonder he hated to talk about his past.

It may not be enough to know the better aspects of his past, whether or not he had ever been happy. He did mention someone close to him who died, so that had to count for something right? But if he was ever happy before that it went right out the window when that person died.

She never thought she would ever meet someone who had a worse childhood than she did, but Ranger took the cake on that one. He had cried when Anna had tried to ask him about what he had told her last night. Talk about traumatic.

He may never reveal the whole truth, but it was enough for Elsa. She loved him, for all his perfection, all his imperfection. All that mattered to her now was keeping him happy for the rest of his life. She no longer cared about the suitors. She no longer wished to meet any of them 'just in case' she found someone who would make a great king. She found her consort. He was sleeping under her. He wasn't a king, or a prince, but he was the one who had fully captured her heart. And in a world where she believed in love (it controlled her powers after all), this was the best she could ask for.

Maybe her council would understand, maybe they wouldn't. It didn't matter to Elsa. She wanted to… she couldn't believe she was saying this… marry him. He had proven his loyalty to her (jumping out of a sled helps) he had showed her his most intimate side. He may be infuriating, but she couldn't ask him to change. She loved him.

She lied back on top of him, listening to the sound of his heartbeat. It soothed her, told her that everything would be all right.

For the first time in a long time, she believed it.

Anna awoke wrapped in her cloak, Kristoff by her side. She still felt angry, the rage pumping through her veins. They had stayed the night in the troll haven hoping that Elsa and Ranger would find there way to them, but there was no hope for that. They were gone, either swept out to the ocean, or wandering in the forests far from Arendelle.

She never felt so helpless in all her life. What was she going to do now? She would have to return to Arendelle and explain that the Queen was missing. They would need Anna to take the throne.

Anna on the throne. To her, that felt ridiculous. Sure they had taught her all the things they taught Elsa, in case Elsa was incapacitated at any point (Anna refused to think killed), but still, Anna didn't feel like a Queen at all. She was clumsy and uncoordinated, always happy and not regal at all. How was she supposed to provide for an entire Kingdom?

It was terrible…

She just wanted Elsa back. Her sister was everything to her. She didn't want to go through her sisters funeral. They were all going to die someday, but Anna was hoping that it was much farther in the future.

You know when they were old?

But she digressed. There was nothing she could do about it.

Anna curled up tighter in a ball. It was almost first light. They were going to have to leave soon. Sven had a very long journey ahead of the. They were going to have to find a new route that took them past the bandit's territory in order to prevent being attacked again.

She just didn't want to. She wanted to continue looking for Elsa. She didn't want to believe her only sister; the person she cared about most was dead. not until they found her body she didn't care how long that took, she was going to have it done!

Just because they fell, didn't mean they were dead. Ranger had taken a deep cut to the chest for crying out loud. If that didn't kill him she wasn't sure what could do the job.

A small smile touched her lips. Perhaps there was hope for the future after all.

Kai and Gerda were frantic. It had been a full day since the Queen and princess had left for the trolls and they hadn't returned. It was quite unlike them to spend a night outside of the castle (even in the short time since the thaw) since that was the case… where were they? They still had to be together where the trolls were right?

Though that didn't explain why they were still missing. Elsa and Anna could not have been gone this long because of an accident. If they weren't back soon, Kai and Gerda were going to have to send some guards out after them. Which was something they were really hoping not to do. Unfortunately it was still dark out, so they would have to wait until after the dawn before they were able to do anything.

They were restless; they didn't want to feel like this. Never in all their time (except for the deaths of the previous monarchs) did they ever feel this worried about the royal family.

They just needed more time…

Ranger woke up, tired. He felt exhausted, like his body had been drained of all its energy. Well that tends to happen after a night of passion. It had been his first time (as was Elsa's he assumed) doing…. Well being that intimate with someone.

Never in all his life did he expect to feel such a rush of emotion like he had for Elsa last night. For the first time in a long time he felt like he could open his heart again. True he never fell in love before, but he was afraid ever since his master had died.

He really wasn't sure what to think about that. He wasn't used to feeling quite so happy as he had last night. He was so used to running, to making sure he didn't have any close connections, because he didn't want to feel the pain of losing them. Never again.

Unfortunately that went right out the window with Kayla Erhard Elsa and Anna. he had grown close to all of them (obviously more closely to Elsa than the others). Kayla was like a sister to him, where as he was totally devoted to Elsa in every way.

But what of love? He used to believe that he didn't need it. Now he couldn't imagine not feeling any sort of love like he did for Elsa. He didn't want to leave. He thought Arendelle was like a home to him. Though he never thought about it, now he realized it was because Elsa was his home. She was his everything.

Last night he had told her the truth about why he hated his home. He never told anyone that before. he had wanted to forget. Elsa hadn't exactly pestered him with question, but after all that had happened, of all people, she was the one who needed to know the most.

Perhaps after so many years, now was the perfect time to heal. He had left the past behind. The future was all he had now. A future he wanted to share with Elsa

After all, they were a couple now… right? he wasn't sure. He didn't want this to be a fling; Elsa did not deserve that at all (he was certain she would freeze him if he did such a thing)

But what else could he call it? Elsa was a queen; he was nothing more than a commoner. While Anna was dating a commoner, she wasn't the ruling monarch to Arendelle. Elsa's marriage would have to be of some political importance, right?

What importance was he? He was just a solider in the queen's guard. It wasn't common for such a union to happen. Besides would Arendelle even approve of such a thing?

Probably not.

But as he stared at Elsa, who was currently lying on top of him, her head on his chest, he found he didn't care at all. He just wanted to stay with Elsa. For the first time in 7 years, he finally felt like he had a home again.

He stroked Elsa's back, causing her to shiver. She let out a pleasured moan, before turning her head to greet him. there was a blissful smile on her face. "Good morning Ranger" she said. Her voice was tired sounding, but he could hear the grin.

So she had just as much of a wonderful night as he had. Well that wasn't surprising, considering what they had done together. It had ben wonderful, as they had never experienced such a thing before.

Elsa leaned forward and pecked his lips. She just wanted to lie here forever. However there were a few problems that they would have to deal with. namely getting back to Arendelle.

Anna was going to be worried sick. The last they had seen of each other, Elsa was falling off a cliff, with Ranger jumping after her. Anna was screaming. It wouldn't surprise her if Anna were going insane looking for them right now. Any sibling would do the same thing. That's what family is for after all.

But they would have to worry about that much later. First things first, they needed to get back home. Well after getting dressed since they were naked. Elsa got off of ranger, before reaching for her underwear. She made no effort to hide herself; Ranger had seen all of her last night.

She pulled up her underwear. She then hooked on her bra. Ranger on the other hand pulled up his pants, before grabbing his shirt.

After Elsa managed to get her underwear on, she waved her hand and an ice dress appeared on her body (she had melted hers the night before)

She turned to him "ready to go?" she asked him. she was eager to get back home, especially for Anna's sake. There was no telling what could happen right now. Elsa was more concerned for that than anything else at the moment.

Ranger nodded, "lets go." Together the two headed out of the cave and into the forest.

Kristoff was already packing the sled. It had ben a while since he and Anna had woken up, and the two were worried. Elsa hadn't returned at all during the night (the storm had prevented Kristoff from looking for her.) it was far past dawn. The sun wasn't exactly high in the sky, but the fact was even after the storm was over, it appeared that Elsa was still missing.

Maybe she went back to Arendelle. It was the best bet that they had; maybe Elsa expected them to be there. It was the first place she would want to go. Not to mention, it was important to get Anna back there. After yesterday, with that storm, the kingdom must have been worried about them.

So Kristoff wanted to get Anna back there before searching for Elsa. He didn't want to lose her too.

Anna would no doubt complain about that but Kistoff would rather make sure that she was safe, rather than get lost while they looked for Elsa. Or worse hurt as well.

He looked over at the young woman, who still seemed as dead as the night before. She wasn't surprised. He doubted that she would be all right until they managed to find some trace of Elsa. It was a wound from which she would never recover from. When the king and Queen had died three years ago, the whole kingdom felt the loss. But that was nothing compared to Anna and Elsa, who hadn't lost the king and Queen. They had lost their parents the people who loved and guided them

"Anna" he whispered. The young woman just trudged over to the sled, guided by olaf. She got in, not saying a word. Not one at all. Kristoff frowned. He wanted to comfort Anna, but now was not the time. He needed to get her back home. Then he would start his search for Elsa.

Kai and Gerda sat on a bench head in their hands. It was well past dawn and there was still no word from the sisters. They doubted that they had even managed to make it to the trolls. If they had, they would have been back by now; there wasn't any reason for them to spend the whole night out with them; the trolls might be ice, but this was no where near as hospital as staying in a castle! They wouldn't want to stay out there in the forest (unless Anna wanted to go camping, which wasn't the case)

they couldn't believe this. they shouldn't have allowed the sisters to go off on that little trip. Sure they had the guys for protection (Elsa hated violence), but that didn't mean that they were equipped for everything that would come there way!

The guards were already being briefed on the situation; they were going to go after Elsa and Anna and bring them back. They needed to be here. The kingdom could not lose any more members of the royal family. The kingdom would fall into complete chaos and disarray. The council has done its job prepping Elsa to be Queen after the death of her parents, but they couldn't rule Arendelle long term. Elsa didn't even have an heir. Without that Arendelle would fall. A change in the government would take too much time!

No they needed to find the girls and bring them back. There was no other way! They had to be alive. They would find them and bring them back home.

Kai and Gerda had promised to keep the girls safe for Adgar and Idun. They weren't about to break that promise now!

The guards were good at their job. They would bring them back!

Kristoff guided Anna past the north mountain. It had been a few hours since they had left the trolls; the sun was now very high in the sky. Kristoff had tried going as slow as possible, in order to find any trace of Elsa and Ranger. But considering they had fallen into a river, chances are they were several miles away. That is, if they had managed to climb out of the stream at all. Even then, they were on foot, so the trip was going to take even longer that way.

Kristoff didn't believe Elsa and Ranger would die sop easily. Elsa had her powers so it was entirely possible that they could have protected her. As well since he was her guard after all, there was a chance any threat coming to them would be neutralized by Ranger who was bound by honor to protect Elsa at all costs. All the guards had to do that.

That was enough for Kristoff to hope. But Anna was too broken by now. They needed to get back quickly, before everything went down hill. Knowing the kingdom like he did, Kristoff was sure that they were already suspicious. In a few hours he was certain that everything was going to go bad. And do it very quickly.

He might be able to stall them by bring back Anna. As the princess Anna could instill some order in the people, but ultimately he needed to bring back Elsa. Which was going to be his first goal after bringing Anna back to Arendelle.

Luckily Arendelle was only an hour away by now. It was a lot easier going down than it was going up; it would save them a lot of time.

He just hoped he could save Anna as well. He didn't want to lose her forever to pain and suffering

Meanwhile, Elsa and Ranger could see the north mountain the distance, maybe another few hours. The stream had washed them pretty far. Thankfully Elsa knew the geography, despite being far from Arendelle.

Of course now the problem was just the time it was going to take to get there. Arendelle would probably start sending out guards to look for them; Elsa was never gone this long without a reason. It was going to be a long day

* * *

**Next Chapter will probably start the party. if not the chapter after that. so gt ready folks, because soon… everything will be revealed. good luck.**


	24. Reunion

**Sorry folks but this chapter turned out very rushed** **.** **I'm sorry if that disappoints you but the next chapter is the reason this is rushed. I really just want to get there because you'll be surprised. **

* * *

Anna and Kristoff made it to the castle gate, both tired and terribly miserable. There had been no sign of either Elsa or Ranger, leaving the two of them to be silent for almost the entire trip. Anna hated not knowing where her sister was. It was a terrible feeling, like a stone in her heart. She was not looking forward to explaining it to Kai or Gerda. Elsa was like a daughter to them; to lose her was unimaginable. They had supported her throughout the great Freeze; they did not want anything to her. Well it happened. And Anna couldn't do anything to stop it. she wanted to believe that Elsa was still alive, but there was no indication of it; the river went straight out to sea.

Ranger would have had to pull her out of the currents, which Anna believed he was capable of doing. He was certainly strong and a survivor, since he took a sword to the chest and lived. Now if only he could extend that to the river, Anna could feel much better.

Anna felt that Elsa was still alive; the two had a bond. If she were dead, Anna believed that she would have felt it. It may have been weird, but that's just what she believed. It was certainly better than giving up hope. In time, Elsa would return as well and Anna would make sure never to let her go every again. after all, family never gives up on each other.

Anna and Kristoff jumped off of the sled, with Olaf taking Anna's hand for the comfort that was nearly impossible to give at this point. The only thing that could really bring back any sort of comfort for Anna was of course her older sister and good friend returning home to them. Without that Anna as everyone knew her would be lost forever.

Kristoff lead Anna to the gates, where some guards immediately opened the door and rushed out grabbing the princess and leading her inside. Waiting for them were Kai and Gerda, who looked worried. As they should be, in Anna's opinion. There was a lump in her chest where her heart should be. How was she ever going to explain to them the situation that Elsa was in they would be heart broken? No forget heartbroken. It was going to destroy them on the inside and leave them to be nothing more than hollow shells. It may not end up as bad as Anna was, but that's just what might happen. It certainly would not surprise Anna at all. That's exactly what was happening to her, just on a greater scale. There really was no amount of comfort that could help her.

Gerda rushed toward the young woman, grabbing her face and checking her for injuries. Well at least that wasn't going to change. Anna didn't even have the fortitude to ague with her anyway. She just wanted to curl up and cry until any sign of Elsa was found. Which at the rate they were going was very unlikely to happen. After all Elsa had fallen into a river! There was no chance of finding her around Arendelle! It had been hours since she even fell in the river. The guards weren't going to find anything unless they went out far to do so. Unless of course there was a chance that they had managed to climb out, but they would have to be very far; it might take forever to find them. Anna wasn't sure how long her heart could bare the pain.

* * *

Elsa and Ranger walked in the direction of Arendelle. Well, Elsa was doing most of the work, considering she was navigating the entire thing. But thankfully there was more to do, considering the two had been talking a while. Ranger refused to explain anything else about his past; which Elsa was ok with. It had taken them falling into a river just to tell her he killed and was tortured for it. Elsa did not want to push him considering how traumatic that was. And she thought her own childhood had been terrible.

She might never exactly know the reasons behind his torture, but still, to torture a child? So heavily that it scared him both physically and mentally? Where were his parents during all this? Did they even care?

Chances are probably not. He never spoke of his parents except when he said that they kept him in the house. The look on his face practically screamed anger when he said 'parents', as if the word itself were some sort of toxin.

'_Mama, Papa! Don't let them take me!'_

Elsa felt her heart drop. That must have been when he was taken away. He must have been so scared.

But in the end, whatever had happened had brought him to Elsa. In a lifetime of childhood abuse, Ranger must have been able to look fondly on that. Elsa certainly knew she did.

For the first time, Ranger actually seemed happy. He was smiling a huge smile as they walked, as if this was some sort of grand adventure. Elsa wasn't quite in the same mood; she wanted to get back hoe to make sure that Anna was ok, as well as let her know that she and Ranger were ok.

But she supposed that for the moment, she could take the time to enjoy herself. After all, it wasn't every day that you were on a walk with the one you loved. She might never get the chance to be alone with Ranger ever again. at least without arousing suspicion. After all, how would everyone react to seeing the Queen and her guard together?

Well nothing good that was for sure; there would be so many legal and political ramifications that they would have to deal with and none of them would exactly be liked by her council members. But she didn't care! This was her life; her decision. Just because they didn't like it didn't mean she had to agree with them. Most of them were clinging to the traditional ways (which wasn't bad, she just wasn't going to give Ranger up because of that!) so marrying a king was to be expected. But a king didn't capture Elsa's heart. Not that she really met one to begin with. At least one that she liked.

King Ranger. Elsa giggled. It sounded silly, but with a name like Ranger, she wasn't sure what else to think. Would someone seriously name his or her kid Ranger?

Elsa turned to him. his past was one thing his name was another "Ranger…" she said hesitantly the said man looked at her, perplexed by her anxiety. "Is… is that your name…."

She watched as Rangers eyes darkened and his face twisted into a scowl. No doubt she once again struck a nerve. But instead of yelling all he said was "I had a name once… bit it has been a long time since I cared to call myself that. My people certainly didn't care about my name when I was arrested and tortured."

He huffed. Elsa just decided to drop the subject. Ranger getting angry was the last thing she wanted to deal with. They needed to get back. If Ranger ran off because of an argument, then it would just prolong the time they would take getting home.

All Elsa wanted to do was get home in the first place. She had a sister to see and boy did she want to see her. Anna would probably choke her to death in the process, but it would be worth it, considering Elsa had given her quite a scare.

They had been walking for several hours now. They were finally under the north mountain meaning that they weren't to far from Arendelle. Which was great for them. They were both tired (or at least Elsa was, Ranger spent most of his time traveling)

There wasn't much time left now. Soon they would be back in Arendelle where they belonged.

* * *

Meanwhile, Caleb and Tyrone as well as several other guards were hiking up the north mountain, having searched the forests at the bottom. They had found no trace of the Queen or her missing guard. Caleb was getting worried, never before had the Queen, or any monarach of Arendelle, gone missing for this long. It worried him that she might be dead.

As well, Ranger. Though he questioned Rangers brutal methods with that one bandit, as well as blowing up their base, he was a good soldier to have around.

But in the end their job was to find the queen. If Ranger were still missing, then he would have to hold on his own. The Queen came first. No exceptions.

But so far there hadn't been any trace of them. They were missing and the search near the river had ended up being fruitless. If they didn't find them soon, night would fall. The guards would have a hard tome scouring the woods in the dark, due to the hunters such as wolves. It would be so easy to get spotted by those things.

Sure it wasn't like they couldn't fight off the wolves; it would just keep interrupting their journey, something that they really didn't want to happen. Every moment they wasted was a moment that the Queen could get injured. And that was something that they really did not need to happen. Arenndelle couldn't afford to lose yet another monarch.

They were going to find them, no matter what. They had to.

* * *

Anna sat in her bath, practically drowning because she was sinking so low into it. Gerda had insisted that Anna wash up after the dreadful events of yesterday. Anna had already had to talk to Gerda. It hadn't exactly been a good conversation. As son as it was revealed Elsa was still missing, more guards had been sent out to find her. but the sun was already starting to set at this point. Soon night would befall them, and with it, the chances of Elsa and Ranger making it back safely. They could be anywhere by now.

Anna sighed, sinking lower into the bath. The bubbles did absolutely nothing to ease the pain in her heart that she was feeling. There was no amount of comfort that would be able to help her now.

Kristoff and Sven offered to go find Elsa of course and Gerda graciously accepted that offer. The more guards they had the better. Sure Kristoff wasn't a guard, but he was a good mountain climber.

The door opened and in walked Gerda, who was carrying some towels. "these are for you when you finish up.' she said, her voice solemn and her expression concerned. Anna didn't even budge, nor say a word. She was just to upset to do almost anything right now. Gerda sighed. She wished she could help the princess, but right now that would only be possible if Elsa was back. So far there was no sign of them but Elsa was tough. She would return.

* * *

Kristoff and Sven walked in the direction of the north mountain. If Elsa had survived, this was the first place she might go if she was injured. It was a long shot, but since it was almost night time, and Kristoff had no other place to think to go, it was at least worth checking out for now. Maybe marshmallow had seen them. The huge snowman certainly liked Elsa enough to help look for them, even if he enjoyed his comfy home (well as comfy as ice could get, but he was a snowman)

Naturally Kristoff hoped that they were there; he wanted to see that Elsa was ok, because then Anna would be ok. If she had to run a kingdom, Anna would fail because she was almost in a comatose state right now. sure she might come out of it eventually, but Kristoff didn't want to wait until then he loved Anna; seeing her like this broke his heart. He had been heartbroken when Anna had frozen over after saving Elsa, but what Anna was feeling was exactly what Elsa had felt then. Absolute heartbreak. He might be heartbroken at the moment for Anna's condition, but it was nothing like what Anna was feeling at the moment.

Kristoff sighed, almost ready to give up and return to the castle empty handed. He didn't want to, and wouldn't of course, because he wasn't going to quit on Anna so easily, but after the whole day of searching and trying to get Anna to be safe, there really wasn't much more he was able to do. He was about to turn around when he stiffened, hearing something in the distance

"Look, its Arendelle!" The voice was feminine and very familiar. His heart leaped. It must have been Elsa! "Lets go Sven!" he cried. The reindeer immediately sped up in the direction that they heard the voice. Kristoff smile. Elsa was alive!

* * *

Ranger and Elsa could see Arendelle just below them, looking quite peaceful, if not for the fact that they were probably worried about the condition of their queen. Not that Elsa could blame them. She got worried when Anna tripped over a rug in the castle. She did not want to see the towns reaction to her gone missing. But she was almost there and that was the important thing.

It would take a little longer to get down there, but the worst was behind them.

The two began the walk down the mountain when they spotted something. Something that made Elsa smile. In the distance they could see Kristoff astride Sven racing towards them with large grins. They managed to reach the two lost souls halfway down the mountain. Kristoff was grinning, his eyes showing how happy he was to see them "you two have a lot of explaining to do." He said.

Elsa smiled "that we do, but can we please just get back to Arenelle Kristoff, Ranger and I have had a very long day, and I would really like to have some privacy, if you don't mind."

Ranger nodded in agreement. There really wasn't much else to say on the matter. Even though he had much better stamina due to his long years of traveling, even he had to admit that they were worn out. But they were back and that's all that mattered right now.

Anna finally stepped out of the tub, drying herself with the towls that Gerda had graciously left out for her. Gerda was like a mother to her, and Anna was forever thankfully for Gerda ever since the deaths of her parents three years ago. She would need her now more than ever.

Anna was expected to take over as queen now that Elsa was missing. Anna honestly did not want to think of that. She might make a competent Queen, because she was taught everything Elsa was growing up; it was needed of course in case anything ever happened to Elsa, just like it had now. Anna hated thinking like that, like she was some sort of spare rather than the princess that she was meant to be. She was more than that though. She was Anna, younger sister of Elsa and a very well liked bubbly person. She wouldn't change and she shouldn't because someone else wanted her too. That defeated the purpose of having any sort of individuality. But she would have to make some changes for Elsa's sake. Being Queen now (hopefully temporarily) meant she had to be serious about ruling Arendelle.

Anna sighed, putting on her cloths and exiting the bath chambers. She was going to make her way to her room. or she would have if she hadn't bumped right into Elsa,who was on her way to the bath chambers as well to wash up after the day she had.

Anna gasped, feeling overwhelming joy enter her heart. Without warning, she threw her arms around Elsa, tears streaming down her face. "Elsa…." She choked refusing to let go of her older sister. Elsa smiled, wrapping her arms around Anna "its ok Anna, I'm back…" she said crying as well.

* * *

Caleb and Tyrone entered the castle having returned empty handed(and having heard the castle bells signaling the return off the Queen). They returned to the barracks where they put down their equipment away. Caleb was smiling. He was happy that the Queen had managed to find her way back after the chaos of losing her. he was quite glad that they hadn't needed to go looking for her deep in the night. It had taken an hour just to get back from the north mountain. Which was terrifying since it was so cold out there. But it was part of the job description so who was he to complain? He turned to Tyrone. "Hey buddy, Thanks for helping me out there." He said grinning.

Tyrone returned the grin "anytime captain." He said, before leaving the room.

* * *

Tyrone entered the dungeon, where as usually he found Elias in his cell waiting for him. Elias was grinning wickedly. "I take it everything went well?" he asked Tyrone. Tyrone nodded "she's safe" he said. Elias smiled. "Good…"

Elias and Tyrone had spent a lot of time planning, but now was the time to get everything ready. They had two weeks before the party where they planned to make their move. "get the guards ready and get our secret weapon ready when the time is right.

Because after the party, it would be nothing but war. A war in which Elias would be the King of Arendelle.

* * *

**Yes War. Between Elias and his guards and Elsa and her friends. But guess what there is a third party. Can you guess who it is before the next chapter?**


	25. The Fall

**Ok only one person even guessed to try and find the third person, But you got it wrong. Seriously when I asked you guys to guess I wanted you to guess. but I honestly wasn't expecting anyone to get it anyway. But here it is folks the chapter you have all been waiting for.**

* * *

Anna shimmied into her dress a bright happy green one (similar to her coronation dress), it had some lighter shades and had small patches of black at the bottom most likely added to make the green pop out a little more, while the chest area had a fleur de leis. In all honest Anna had to say it worked out well, she had always enjoyed dresses (even though the last one she wore at an event like this was her sisters coronation, and that didn't turn out so well) Anna was really hoping that nothing would go wrong tonight. Well since it had started to snow in the past two weeks (since it was December after all) Anna was certain that she didn't have to worry about another eternal winter from Elsa (she could blame mother nature this time) besides, Elsa knew how to control her powers now, so what was the worst that could happen?

With a smile, Anna just giggled. She was hoping that any suitor that approached Elsa ended up frozen in a block of ice. Admitting, this was because she was hoping that Ranger and Elsa would still end up together. The two looked positively adorable, at least in Anna's humble opinion. Speaking of which, she had noticed something odd about the two as of late. The two would whisper to each other when they thought the others weren't looking. They would constantly steal glances at each other. Heck Anna even saw them laughing together! Ranger laughing was something that she never thought she would ever see, he seemed so serious all of the time. How Elsa even managed to get him to laugh was a mysterious in and of it self.

Anna would have cheered at the thought of Elsa dating, but she hadn't yet asked. Mainly because Ranger and Elsa never left each other's side. Anna could argue this was romantic, but Elsa could just deny it saying Ranger was doing his job; he was her guard after all.

Did he have to help Elsa into her room though? Seriously he walked with her to her room with her one night after dinner. Anna had been so confused. Elsa never let anyone do that. She liked her space, especially in her own room. That is unless Anna popped in every now and again. But a male, especially one as handsome as Ranger? Elsa would have killed Kristoff if he tried that. So what had changed? Surely it hadn't been anything to do with the day Elsa fell off the sleigh on the way to the trolls, did it? Well if that was the case, Anna had to wonder what exactly had happened that night. Well clearly Ranger had opened up enough to laugh around Elsa. That was just too much for Anna to process with thinking "what the heck?"

Anna was hoping that she could ask Elsa what was going on at the party (she would prefer before, but again Elsa and Ranger were inseparable), but Elsa and her were supposed to be together for most of the party, so maybe she would be able to ask then.

Of course Elsa might be quick to avoid, but Anna wanted to know the truth. Elsa and her were close again. Anna would protect her if needed be. If she and Ranger had become closer, Anna would support her. She liked Ranger as it was. Sure his attitude was rough, but he had a good heart.

So if he were dating her sister, like Anna suspected she would be happy. She knew that there would be some political issues Elsa would have to deal with if she fully intended to marry Ranger (the council certainly hadn't like the idea of Anna and Kristoff dating) because he wasn't a royal heir, but it would be fun to see Elsa shoot down any marriage proposals. She didn't want Elsa to marry some stuffy prince from another kingdom.

But for now Anna wasn't going to worry about that she still needed to get ready for the party.

Elsa was also slipping into a dress trying to look as sexy as possible while doing so, (she wasn't wearing provocative dress) since Ranger was watching her with a wide grin on his face. Her dress was quite similar to Anna's only it was closer to aqua and had white trimmings were as Anna had black. She hadn't worn this dress yet, never even shown it to anyone. It was a relatively new dress, one that had been purchased for her some months ago by Gerda as a gift.

Well now seemed to be the perfect time to wear it. Especially if Ranger was the first one to see her in it. She wanted to look good for him tonight. True she couldn't show any of her true feelings for him tonight because of the shock that all of those princes were coming to ask for her hand, only to find out that she was taken by her personal guard. Well she was going to have fun shooting down all those proposals.

The problem was that she had yet to reveal herself to the council. And with good reason. She couldn't tell them before the ball because all of those princes were coming. But after seeing her shoot down all of them, they might be compelled to listen to her a little more. They had to see that her husband, her king was her choice, not theirs. Ranger was the noblest man she knew. He accepted his failings he admitted to her that he had killed, but not in cold blood, not with the intent of doing so. But he had done it and he regretted it.

He was worth more to her than any prince that would come for her. Her heart belonged to Ranger and Ranger alone. He had saved her, opened up to her kissed her, and touched her there was no one else she wanted to share her life with. If nobody agreed with her, then she had no reason to care. If the council wanted her to marry, she would marry Ranger.

She turned to him giving him a seductive smile. He gave her a grin "you are looking positively radiant Elsa" he said. Elsa smiled walking up to him and giving him a quick peck on his lips "so do you my guard" she said in a low husky voice. Her breath tickled his skin. In all honesty, neither he nor Elsa had been intimate since the night in the cave. They both agreed that in the castle with many people to hear them could potentially be a very bad idea. She didn't want to go to breakfast one morning to find Anna complaining about noises she heard last night. Elsa wouldn't want to have to explain to Anna the miracle of life.

She would have to tell her eventually, she was starting to get suspicious about her relationship with Ranger. She was just happy it was still a secret.

There was suddenly a knock on the door, causing both of the parties to freeze. Elsa jumped back, trying desperately to hide her blush. Thankfully the door hadn't opened. She did not want to be caught in that position with Ranger. That would be too much to explain.

"Your majesty?" came Gerda's voice "the ball is due to start soon. You and princess Anna are needed down stairs"

Elsa cleared her throat trying to regain her composure "of course." She said in the most regal manner she could "I will be down momentarily "she said. The footsteps retreated, allowing Elsa and Ranger to breath a sigh of relief. Elsa looked at him "I'll see you down stairs." She whispered, before leaving the room, swaying her hips as she did so.

Ranger just chuckled "she's going to kill me" he laughed as he exited the room as well

Anna walked outside her room, where to her surprise she found Kristoff waiting for her. He was dressed quite nicely in a black suit that Elsa had Kai make for him just for the occasion. He had a blue cravat and white shirt. He was looking somewhere between happy and unnerved. Anna giggled walking up to him, giving him a quick peck on his cheek. He humped as if surprised which he had been. "Anna he breathed taking in his girlfriends full appearance. Anna blushed "you look quite dashing yourself, my Reindeer King" she said. Kristoff grinned leading her downstairs and into the ballroom.

Everyone people had already arrived, not taking up so much of the rom so that it was full f, but still there were a lot of people. Anna was happy. This was hopefully going to be the first party that absolutely nothing went wrong.

This was the first party after the coronation. It didn't need to be the second party that went wrong. If that were the case, Anna would have though that parties would never be normal in Arendelle.

But as she walked into the room, she believed everything was going to be ok.

Caleb was standing with some of his best troops. They were assigned to guard the ballroom, both inside and out during the party. Nut in all honest, they really weren't expecting anything to happen. The most that could happen was an intoxicated partygoer who had a little too much to drink. It was dull work, but still everyone had to be orderly and have a good time.

Caleb smiled. After the ordeal with the Queen and weeks of training after that, it felt good to relax. True he wasn't really much of a dancer, but he tried his best when it counted. Not that he was going to dance. He was assigned to guard the room, not go crazy.

He would do his job well, as would Tyrone, who was in charge of security outside of the castle, should anything happen out there. He trusted that Tyrone would do his job well. Tyrone was a good friend as well as a good solider. Together the two would make sure nothing could go wrong tonight.

Tyrone stood at his post edgy. It was nearly time for Elias to be sprung from jail. One of his allies was posted at the cells, which was good, because he was the only one who could help Elias escape undetected. Most of the other guards were posted closer to the castle. When Elias and the others managed to reach the ball room, they would storm in and take the queen captive forcing her to marry Elias to avoid a full scale rebellion against the crown. Elias wanted Elsa for his wife and the mother f his children so they would have heirs to rule his kingdom. The queen wanted what was best for Arendelle and what was best for Arendelle was not war. By threatening the lives of everyone in that room, as well as the city, Elsa would no doubt agree to the conditions set for by Elias

Tyrone grinned. All was going according to plan. Jut a few more minutes and everything would be ready. Elias would take over and a new reign would begin for Arendelle with Elias as king and Tyrone as the captain of the guards. Anyone who got in their way would be killed or imprisoned. That was the way that was needed if Elias was to solidify his rule.

Elsa and Ranger were the last to arrive at the party, at least of the royal family and guests. Everyone gaped when they saw what Elsa was wearing, even Anna, (even though she was wearing the same thing). Elsa could vaguely hear the whispers from the crowed, which were openly admiring her beauty. Not that she cared. She knew that she was beautiful, she just didn't let it go all the way to her head. She knew that some people would just marry her for her beauty rather than for herself. Which again was why she was going to ignore anyone proposing to her. She wasn't going to marry if it wasn't for love. She would be a fool to do so otherwise. But for now she was here to enjoy the party, not listen to marriage proposals. She was forever going to hate her council for that, but she couldn't wait until she saw their faces, when she told them why she had refused every single marriage proposal that was going to end up coming her way.

She normally wasn't so vindictive, but in this case she was going to love saying no. Except if it was to her friends and family. Unless Anna asked the questions that Elsa couldn't answer in front of others.

Elsa made her way to the throne, that she had to stand by, while Ranger went to his post next to her. Anna, late as always, ran up to her post next to Elsa. When everyone turned to give his or her attention to the Queen she smiled. She cleared her throat and began speaking

"Welcome Citizens of Arendelle and friends. I want to thank all of you for attending Arendelles first winter ball. It is quite the honor to have each and every one of you here. I know some of you traveled long and far to get here, but rest assured, tonight will be a night to remember indeed. Please have yourselves a good time and enjoy the night."

With that said, the party began, as the band began to play quite the set of music. Anna of course went to find Kristoff and proceeded to dance with him during the first song,

Elsa smiled as she watched her sister dance. After everything that had happened, Anna deserved a chance at happiness, more than anyone here. Well except Ranger, who had suffered a far worse fate. She turned to look at him. He hadn't budged. He was standing a stoic as a statue barely even moving. If she hadn't known he was even there she would have been surprised. In fact what was surprising was that no one had even asked him to dance. He was single as anyone knew, but it appeared that they were to busy with the noble men that littered the room, as opposed to the guards that were watching them for any foul play.

In truth Elsa would be internally jealous, should Ranger be asked to dance, so she was glad about that, but right now she was hoping for him to ask her. She wanted her first dance to be with him. If nothing else that would be the perfect start to the perfect night.

Quietly she sidestepped closer to him, poking him in the ribs. As expected, he turned his head slightly, giving her a smirk "do you want to dance Elsa?" he asked mischievously. Elsa poked him again "yes you. I want to dance." Ranger extended his arm and Elsa took it, allowing him to take her to the center of the ballroom. As if on cue a slow dance started and Ranger pulled Elsa close staring at her straight in the eye.

Elsa felt her breath hitch. She was enjoying herself at the moment, but it was becoming increasingly harder to resist the urge to kiss him in front of these people. But she couldn't. it would raise far to many questions, questions that Elsa couldn't answer with causing an uproar. So instead she gave him a smiled and placed a hand on his chest, while taking his other hand.

Ranger chuckled "I warn you princess" he whispered, "I've never done this before."

Elsa's eyes widened. She certainly wasn't expecting that "why didn't you tell me?" she whispered harshly "I would have taught you!"

Ranger smiled " Gerda taught me. I just never actually danced before"

Elsa's eyes widened and she sought out Gerda in the crowed who was giving her a smile. Elsa decided she needed to pay Gerda extra for this.

The two began dancing, moving in tune to the music. Elsa was happy that she was doing this. It was a moment that couldn't be ruined.

They spun in circles until the very end in which Ranger twirled Elsa on the spot, resulting her pressing her back into him.

As the song came to a close, Elsa could feel her heart pounding. Dancing with Ranger was the most perfect thing.

Ranger held her close, holding her tightly "thank you Elsa."

Before Elsa could respond the door to the ballroom opened and Elias stormed in with all of his loyal forces. Everyone in the room gasped including Elsa. She never ordered Elias to be released just what was the meaning of this?

Elias opened his mouth and started yelling "Queen Elsa! My troops and I have surrounded this castle! Give up, there is no escaping from this."

Caleb, who was watching the entire thing stood forward, glaring at Elias "Elias, what is the meaning of this?"

Elias turned to Caleb "tell me cousin, how does it feel knowing that you have no allies amongst your guards. You were never meant to be a leader. They follow me!"

However one of the guards in the room screamed "no, we are loyal to Caleb! We follow him!"

Caleb smiled "no cousin, what you have is a pack of dogs, blindly following you for the promise of wealth and power.

Elias laughed, giving Caleb a cruel smirk "lets see what happens after tonight. Tyrone! Bring in the prisoners!"

Caleb stiffened. Tyrone?!

Tyrone dragged in two people blindfolded and bound into the room. He and another guard put them on their knees, before taking out daggers and pressing them against the prisoner's throat "Queen Elsa, you and your guard must show yourselves or I will kill these two."

Ranger and Elsa looked at each other. it was most likely a trap, but they couldn't just let them die. Together, they walked into Elias view.

He stared at the Queen "your majesty. You will make a fine bride indeed"

Elsa growled, "that's what this is about? I won't marry you Elias, you are nothing but a monster if you think I will be forced into marrying you like this!"

Elias gave her a twisted smile. "Oh no? Well then… Ranger?" he said to the young man "do you know what it is like to lose everything?"

Ranger frowned. The truth was that he did, but Elias didn't know that "no" he said emotionless Elias laughed "then it is time you learned. You took everything from me! I was to be her guard! I was to gain her favor and become king. But before I kill you… I will show you what it is to lose everything you cared about."

Tyrone and his enforcer pulled off the bags that were covering the prisoners heads revealing…

"Kayla! Erhard!" Ranger screamed. No!

Elias smiled. "Do it."

Tyrone and the other guard quickly slit their throats. Ranger watched in horror as blood gushed from their wounds the blood staining their outfits and pulling on the floor as the two choked on their own blood. They fell to the ground, dead.

Elsa gasped, covering her mouth, unable to stop herself from crying. She couldn't believe what she had just witnessed.

Ranger fell to his knees. No… No! They were dead and it was his entire fault.

Just like his master had died before…

Something within him snapped. He felt something dangerous, something powerful well up inside him, fueling his rage and pain. He snapped his head looking straight at the guard who had killed Kayla. His eyes flashed red and suddenly the guard suddenly burst into flames, incinerating until there was nothing but a pile of ash.

* * *

**Did anybody see that coming? Well not to worry more on that will be discussed in later chapters. **


	26. Son of the Devil

**Ok This Chapter was a lot of fun! Thank you all because this chapter can be describe in one word. Massacre! Hope you have fun watching people die. **

* * *

Everyone stared in horror at the scene in front of him or her. Tyrone was shaking, barely able to comprehend the sight of one of his allies literally burnt to a crisp next to him. The room was so silent; you couldn't even hear the sound of anyone breathing.

Ash… there was nothing left but a pile of ash. There wasn't even time for the pour soul to scream as he was burnt alive. He was just gone.

Elsa was hyperventilating staring not at the ash on the ballroom floor, but the man who was responsible. She could feel her heart pounding inside her chest, threatening to break out of her rib cage as she tried to figure out what had just happened. Ranger…. He was just like her! Ok not exactly, but he had…. Of all the powers he had to have it, just happened to be fire? Why didn't he tell her? She would have trusted him. She wouldn't have even tried to hurt him, let alone consider it. Everything made sense now. Why he was tortured. Why he was so afraid. He had lost control and killed those kids with his powers, probably in front of other people just like this!

How had he been hiding it for so long? She could barely control her powers when she was upset. She had seen him angry and scared so many times, but here, he had just lost it and incinerated one of her (now traitorous) guards.

He was still on his knees shaking uncontrollably. Elsa bent down on her knees and reached for him, but before she could even touch his back. A wave of fire erupted from him, sending her flying backwards into the crowd. She landed hard on her back, but thankfully she wasn't burnt. She sat up, looking directly at him with a look of shock and horror on her face.

Ranger was mortified. Seven long years of hiding his powers were wasted. They had seen him. They knew what he was. Now nothing else mattered. They were going to kill him. That was the fate of a demon.

He was nothing to his village. One look at him and they called him a monster. A demon. The son of the Devil. There was no attempt to protect him. They had taken him away, hoping to either use him or kill him. Instead, they had cast him aside, like garbage.

A dark aura surrounded his body. Everyone gasped as he stood up on his legs, suddenly letting out a blood curdling scream as the dark aura flared around him. he closed his eyes, allowing the change to consume him to fuel his hatred and rage.

He was screaming in pain, in anger, in fear. Everything he had gained was lost forever. His home… he had been cast away. His family…. He had been renounced. His life… meant nothing to anyone.

Elsa watched in horror as the man she loved changed before her eyes. His brown hair changed color, becoming as black as the night sky. His once fair skin darkened becoming a tan color. His eyes. When he finally opened his eyes, Ranger was no more. The dark green shifted straight into a bloody, fiery red, filled not with arrogance, but with rage.

He looked to be the complete opposite of Elsa.

He was staring straight and Elias, who was rooted on the spot. The look of triumph replaced by a look of horror. He had no idea what he had just unleashed.

Ranger suddenly gave him a grin a twisted evil mock of a smile. Elias back away, before turning attempting to run away from the other man; if you could even call him that.

He didn't make it far. A pillar of fire erupted in front of him, blocking his path to escape. He turned around, trying to find another way out, but more pillars erupted beside him preventing him from moving anywhere except backwards.

Elias turned, looking death right in the face. Ranger was advancing on him, slowly, like every step and one less heartbeat in Elias's life. He quickly looked to his guards "what are you waiting for!" he screamed, "Get him."

The guards looked at their leader like he was insane. Fight a being that looked to be more destructive than the queen? That was suicide.

Ranger suddenly let out a cold shrill laughter, filled with malice "what's a matter? Afraid if a little fire?"

Tyrone unsheathed his sword. He would kill him. His focus was on Elias. He ran towards the young man, screaming. Her raised his sword, ready to slice the demon "die you monster!"

As he got close however his sword suddenly heated up burning his hands. Tyrone stumbled dropping his sword. He glanced at his hands screaming in pain. Ranger looked at the other man "Erhard…" he growled, turning to Tyrone.

Tyrone fell backwards, trying to crawl away from Ranger. Ranger was giving him a look of pure and utter hatred. 'Please!" Tyrone begged, "don't kill me! I was just following orders."

Ranger looked at him. "Mercy?" he growled. He reached down and grabbed Tyrone by his throat "Did Erhard and Kayla beg for mercy before you killed them!" he screamed angrily

Ranger's hand suddenly superheated, burning Tyrone's neck. Tyrone couldn't even scream as his vocal cords were burnt. He flailed in Rangers grip, clawing desperately trying to escape. Blood began leaking from his mouth and neck as his skin was burnt to the point that only the muscle was left. His arms fell to his side as he lost a feeling in his limbs.

A moment later his body dropped to the floor, severed from his burnt neck. Ranger looked at the corpse, before tossing the head aside, leaving it to roll on the ground in front of some of the guests.

No body moved. They were staring at the corpse or the head. Ranger looked at Elias, who was desperately trying to escape. The guards were surrounding him, futile trying to protect him. Ranger just waved his hand. Blades of fire swung out, racing towards the guards who were attempting to protect Elias. The guards gasped as they were sliced in half, falling dead to the floor.

Elias was all alone now, but he would no go out begging. He reached for his sword, unsheathing it. He raised his sword and charged at Ranger, who stopped watching the man blindly attempt to kill him.

With a grin, Ranger opened his mouth. Fire built up inside him, filled with all his hatred and all his rage. A moment later a stream of fire erupted from his mouth, engulfing Elias. Elias screamed as he was burnt, the fire singing every cell in his body. He could feel his legs vaporizing from the intense heat, his face melting. Everything he had fought for, gone. He fell to the ground, the fire destroying his body.

Ranger just kept burning him not even making it quick, Elias deserved to suffer before he died. It would not be a painless death. He increased the heat, inciting even more screams from not Elias, but the crowd.

Elsa watched the brutality of Rangers kill. Elias was most likely dead by now, but it appeared Ranger had no intention of stopping. He was going to burn Elias until there was nothing left of him

She had to do something. She couldn't just let this continue. Elias was dead, but she couldn't let ranger be consumed by the monster he was becoming. She opened her mouth. "Ranger! STOP!" she screamed, all of her fear behind her command.

All at once it was over. Ranger shut his mouth, rigid. The fire continued to burn Elias, or rather what was left of his corpse. But Ranger had stopped. The hatred on his face was washed away, leaving behind confusion as he turned to stare at Elsa. Red met Blue as they stared at each other.

Ranger breathed heavily, tears brimming in his eyes. Elsa was already crying, tears falling down her face. "Ranger…." She whispered.

Ranger backed away from Elsa, unable to look at her. He turned swinging his hand towards the crowd. Fire erupted from his fingers, sending a fireball towards them. Everyone dispersed avoiding the fireball as it smashed into the nearest window, shattering it. Before Elsa could stop him, Ranger suddenly burst into flames and took flight, flying through the window and into the open night.

Elsa looked at the window, where Ranger had fled. He… he had killed them. Every single one of them. In a matter of minutes, Elias and all of his followers were dead, utterly destroyed by Ranger.

But this? Elsa never considered the possibility of others out in the world like her. Ranger had proved her wrong. Now he was gone, off to worlds unknown, afraid of everyone who had seen him. she felt her heart break.

Why… why had he hidden this from her. She wanted to help him.

"We must go after him!" one of the visiting Delegations said. "We must stop him before he becomes a very dangerous threat!"

Elsa felt her heart stop. This was her coronation all over again. They wanted to kill him. They wanted to…

Unlike Elsa whom people had been afraid of, because of the shock of finding out about her powers, Ranger had killed with his, unrestrained. There was no way to protect him from this. Not without arousing suspicion.

What was she supposed to do? She couldn't authorize this. He was her guard… her lover. She couldn't just let anyone kill him. But how was she supposed to protect him? he was a monster in the eyes of the people now. To find out he was also involved with the Queen. Elsa might as well just behead her self for treason. They would accuse her of every crime in the law. She needed to find a way to help ranger without getting her self or the other killed.

However there was the issue of the pillars of fire in the front of the room. She walked past the fire that Elias was still cooking in (she didn't care; she would let him stay like that a while) and waved her hands, unleashing a blizzard the cold air and snow quickly managed to put out the fires

"Elsa!" Elsa turned and saw Anna stumbling through the crowd, trying desperately to reach the Queen. Elsa reached fort Anna grabbing her in a tight embrace. Anna! She was safe. She was shaking madly, but she was safe. Ranger must not have killed anyone he didn't want to. Elsa smiled. She was thankful for that much at least.

Anna looked at Elsa, a look of worry and concern on her face. "Elsa… did you know?"

Elsa shed her. They needed a place to talk privately about this. She took Anna and dragged her out of the room, taking her to one of Elsa's private rooms. She took Anna inside and locked the door. "Well?" Anna asked her

Elsa shook her head. Of course she hadn't known. He had hidden it so well, she doubts she would have ever known if tonight hadn't happened the way it did. To have such control, let alone to change his appearance to look normal. How in the world had he even managed to do that in the first place?

"No… Anna I didn't…" she whispered. She turned away. She needed to go after him. If not to bring him back (which she doubted would happen anyway), to understand him. To know the truth behind his past, his powers. How he had been wronged. She knew where he was going. During the two weeks they had been talking, Ranger had asked her about anywhere she would go. She had mentioned her ice palace. If he was to hide, he might hide there (though she wasn't sure if her powers would be unaffected by his). Everyone might expect him to flee from Arendelle. No one would expect in to be the north mountain, it was the perfect hiding place.

"Anna… I have to go after him." Anna's eyes widened. Ok, she was not at all afraid of Ranger. In fact she was sort of happy that he had his powers. Fire and ice, nothing better than that right? No what scared her was the fact that he went on a rampage of destruction with them. He had killed every single guard that had sided with Elias in a matter of minutes, seconds really. How was Elsa supposed to fight him, if it came to that? Elsa rarely used her powers for violence; she only ever used them for defense and that was when the Duke and Hans had attacked her. Ranger… if they fought, Ranger would win, no contest.

Of course Elsa knew that Ranger would never even attempt to hurt her. But even she had to admit his powers were very frightening.

"Elsa, I admire your courage. I really do. And its awesome that Ranger has those totally cool, no pun intended, and fiery powers! But are you serious right now?" she screamed

Elsa looked at Anna "Anna, he would never hurt me! I love him; and he loves me!"

Anna would have been shocked to here Elsa say those words about anyone. Heck any other day and she would have been screaming with joy, singing about it as she danced across the halls. But today, she was more concerned about her sister's safety than she was about her love life. No today she needed to be the smart one.

Anna shook her head "that's what I said about you! Look where that went; you froze me! Sure it was accidental, but you still managed to do that! it doesn't matter if he loves you. One slip up and you could end up, oh I don't know burned to a crisp like everyone else who made him mad!" Anna screamed.

Elsa sighed, shaking her head "Anna! I am aware of how dangerous he is; I saw it just as well as you did. But that's the problem. He needs a friend. His whole life he has been alone. He just lost to people he cares about. He needs help."

Anna did agree with that. Ranger did need help. But how? If this was going to be anything like the coronation night, then manhunt was going to ensue. Elsa was going to have to sneak out undetected, find Ranger before anyone else did and try and convince him to do something that wouldn't get him killed.

Or worse Elsa. Anna did not want to see Elsa hurt in all of this. But still they needed to find Ranger.

"What's the plan?" Anna asked. Elsa smiled "I think I know where Ranger is going, but we need to go alone. If all of us leave then people might get suspicious. I need you and Kristoff to stay here, keep people from getting upset. If anything goes wrong. My ice powers should protect me."

Anna stiffened no Elsa, I can't! Not after." Elsa silenced Anna with a hug she gripped her younger sister tightly "Anna, I know, but I'm the only one with the means to protect myself."

Anna hugged Elsa tightly. "Please… don't go," she whispered. Elsa pulled away, giving Anna a smile "it's going to be alright." The two then exited the room ready to head out so Elsa could leave when a voice stopped them

"Your majesty!" Caleb said. Elsa turned to see Caleb and Kristoff walking towards her. Elsa frowned "what is it Captain" she said Caleb sighed, "some of my guards want to go after Ranger… but I can't. Ranger saved my life; he used his powers to escape some bandits-"

Anna jumped "you knew!" he said pointing a finger at Caleb. Caleb shook his head "no princess Anna… he was in a separate cell. He must have melted his handcuffs and killed a bandit to prevent anyone from finding out."

Elsa sighed "Caleb, I appreciate your honesty, but I have a job for you." Caleb nodded "I need you and what remains of your soldiers to keep anyone from leaving."

Caleb smiled "my guards have already secured the room." Elsa smiled "good keep it up." she said she then looked at Kristoff "Kristoff make sure Anna doesn't leave."

Kristoff frowned "Elsa?" he asked Elsa shook her head "I don't have any more time to explain! Elsa said, Quickly shutting him up "Anna can explain everything to you after I'm gone."

Kristoff frowned. He never argued with Elsa; she was the Queen after all.

Elsa and Anna made their way to the stables. Elsa could have run up the north mountain herself, but speed and time were more necessary. Plus if there was any chance that Ranger was going to lose all control again. She needed her strength in order to defend herself.

However as Elsa walked a moment she stopped. Anna turned to her. Elsa, what's wrong. Elsa just smiled and waved her hands. Snow erupted from her fingertips, creating a beautifully crafted snow horse, which neighed happily. Anna felt her mouth drop open. The horse was very beautiful, and very lifelike, despite being made of snow.

Elsa quickly climbed on top of the horse; a snow horse wouldn't get tired climbing up the north mountain. Therefore it would save her even more time trying to get to Ranger.

She looked at Anna "I'll be fine Anna" she said, giving her younger sister a reassuring smile. Anna nodded, though inside she was still very worried. "Elsa." She said.

Elsa smiled, before snapping the reins on her horse, which raced out of the castle grounds and into the night, going towards the north mountain

* * *

**Well now. Is our favorite Queen going to be able to convince him or will more blood be spilt? Stay tuned.**


	27. Truth

**Words can not describe the pain of this chapter. It will not leave you feeling happy at all. Enjoy!**

* * *

Elsa raced into the wilderness beyond Arendelle taking the familiar path to the north mountain. She couldn't believe it. Only five months ago, the world had learned of the Queen of Arendelle and her ability to control ice and snow. Now a new being appeared one to control fire. Elsa had forever seen fire as destructive, a deadly power of nature. She never really liked it, mainly because it was just to hot for her tastes. Pity she had to fall for the one man who just happened to control it.

Elsa had always thought she was alone when it came to her powers. She had never thought that someone like her or even opposite her could exist. But today had proved her so wrong. Now she had to find a way to prevent a complete catastrophe from occurring. If Rangers powers were anything like her own, the sun was not going to be happy when it rose in the coming morning.

But Ranger was also very stubborn. How was she going to convince him to come home?

Chances were he wasn't going to want to. She had seen the look of fear in his eyes. He was afraid of everyone who had seen him perform the powers. She had never seen such fear in anyone not even herself.

To see such fear in anyone's eyes? That was something that Elsa could never believe until now. Elsa was afraid that she would be hurt by those who saw her powers. Ranger… he was hurt. He mentioned that night that he had been arrested and tortured for two long years, as a child. There was no recovering from that ordeal, physically or psychologically.

But just how deep did it go? A child… with the powers of fire was a great asset to a military. Was he groomed to be a fighter? He certainly was very capable with a sword.

No… he came from a small village, not anywhere close to the King. Even if the king had heard word, Ranger would never have been able to escape from him as a child, even with his powers. He had been afraid of what normal dignitaries would do to him. So something so terrifying must have happened to him that he just had no choice but to run. But what?

These past two weeks, Elsa had told him just about everything she could tell him. her likes dislikes even the past thirteen years spent in her room, what that did to her. Ranger barely said anything about himself. She did ask where his home country was, and he described it as "a culturally rich, beautiful landscape with a Mediterranean climate"

Elsa of course being the queen that she was took a look at such a description and came up with Italy. He was from Italy? Elsa of course had never been to Italy in her life, but there was a rather intriguing question to ask. At what point would a child wander from Italy all the way to Norway at a very young age for thirteen years (he mentioned leaving home at the tender age of seven) there had to be a better explanation. Even if he hated his home for the arrest reason, why would he force himself to leave Italy for good?

She was honestly happy he told her that, but she knew there was more to the story. He wasn't just some wanderer any more. He was her lover. a man in pain. He was going to help him whether he liked it or not. She just had to convince him first.

* * *

From his perch far above her, Ranger watched as Elsa was racing towards the north mountain, which wasn't very far. His red eyes were brimmed with tears. He hadn't cried at all since he ran from the castle. Not that it was worth it. All of his tears had dried up years ago.

"_Mama! Papa! Don't leave me!"_

He was only five years old that day. The day his life was stolen from him. Now here he was watching Elsa trying to help him get it back. But there wasn't anything she could do. He was a monster, a demon. The Son of the Devil. He was all those things, but to Elsa he was none of those things.

He couldn't hide it. He had tried for so long. It had been his drive to run to forget. But then, he fell in love. All the hatred. All the rage. It was gone, replaced by something he thought he would never feel. He was never shown love, not even by his master. They were friends of course, but… his master was tough and never really showed him a soft side. His master's wife on the other hand. well he supposed that that's what a mother was supposed to be like. She did fuss over him, so maybe that was love.

Not that he thought of them as parents. He hated his parents. He thought family was supposed to stick together through thick and thin. Guess his parents didn't believe in that. he opened his palm and a fire burst from it. He didn't know how old he was when this first happened. All he knew was that after that day, his parents chained him in like an animal.

Then of course he was arrested.

Had he known what lay ahead of him,.. He would have run that much sooner, but the prison cell they kept him in… it just wouldn't have worked. They had made sure to keep him under control.

Until he turned seven. He had been so weak, but in the last shred of humanity that anyone had for him, they didn't kill him right then and there. Guess someone still saw a little boy in him after all. Not that it made any difference. His life afterwards was still terrible. Sometimes he wished they killed him.

At least until he met Elsa. The woman who opened his heart. Who broke through the barriers of pain that had encased what was left of his heart. She saw him, not the monster that he was. He had sworn never to stay in one place for too long, but after meeting her that day, he found a place he just might belong. Or at least would have if it wasn't for the curse that he had been born with.

Elsa had said she had grown up afraid of her powers, that it was a curse, because she couldn't control them. not until she discovered love was the source of said control. But she had no idea what a true curse was like. She didn't no the pain of truly being alone.

Ranger huffed, before turning and walking away. She wanted to see him at the north mountain? Fine he would go. If only to indulge her.

Not she would even see him again after this.

* * *

Elsa continued her trek up the north mountain on her snow horse, still having found no sign of Ranger. He really had moved fast hadn't he? Well then again he had flown all the way to the north mountain, but still, there wasn't even a trace of him. then again traveling for so long probably makes you very good at hiding, particularly when you are a man with fire powers. Yeah that sounded like something that needed hiding. She would know, she hid in her room for 13 years. not that she was very good at hiding anything.

But all she wanted was to make sure Ranger was safe. Caleb was probably doing his best at keeping anyone from getting weapons (even if they could, they saw what Ranger could do; they wouldn't have a chance at defeating him). Even Elsa had to admit, though her powers were an exact opposite to his, she had barely any fighting prowess. But... he wouldn't hurt her. He never had. In fact the only time he had ever caused her physical pain was when…. She blushed. She hadn't expected the pain, but it had felt good afterwards.

She shook her head. Now was not the time to get lost in the after thoughts of what was a wonderful night. She needed to find him and convince him to return home. Home. Arendelle was his home. Elsa was his family. She knew that he had to think like that.

Elsa really was the only family he had. He had yet to open up to anyone else (which was party due to the fact their entire relationship was still a secret, for the most part). Of course how was anything going to go well if he was in such a rage that he wouldn't listen to her. well he did listen to her when he burned Elias to a crisp, but she wasn't sure he would do that again any time soon.. But if he was as stubborn as he always was, she doubted that anything good was to come from this. Not to mention, though he was usually arrogant, him being angry was another story. One wrong move, and he might go into another rage.

She made it up the north mountain, her ice palace standing in all of its glory. It looked completely untouched, as if frozen in time. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe he had run somewhere else. With a sigh, she began to turn around when she suddenly heard a roar and Marshmallow, the abominable snowman she created burst through the front door, a giant smoking hole in his chest.

"Marshmallow!" Elsa screamed jumping off of her horse and running to the Snowman. Marshmallow glanced at her "Marshmallow ok." He boomed in his voice. He then pointed to the doorway. Elsa turned, Ranger was in there. He had hurt Marshmallow.

Elsa quickly ran inside, where she saw Ranger just standing there. He gave her a grin. The way it looked made Elsa feel sick. It was like she was no longer staring at the man she loved. It was like staring at a shell of a man, like he was possessed. But the look in his eyes. She could tell it was him. But he wasn't hiding behind a mask of pain and arrogance, now it was nothing but rage.

"I knew I'd find you here." Elsa said she was trying to sound brave but knew that he was seeing right through that. she was shaking like mad, her voice wavering. Her palms were sweaty and it was taking all of her strength not to run away from the cruel gaze that he was giving her.

Ranger gave a very cruel laugh, one so cold that Elsa could feel a shiver going across her spine. She was scared. Ranger could do anything and she could do nothing to stop it. Maybe she should have listen to Anna and just leave him be. But at the same time she knew that it would be impossible. Unchecked Ranger could destroy anything and everything in his path. She just wanted to make sure she could save him before he drowned in his own hatred

"Don't flatter yourself Elsa. You and I both know that this was the only place we could go. That is if you want the truth." Boy he was still arrogant wasn't he? But Elsa stiffened at his words. The truth? What did he mean?

Ranger sighed. "I told you that I was from Italy… you asked why did you never go back? well Elsa it's a very long terrible story. That is the only way you will truly understand the pain…

Elsa shook her head "Ranger, it doesn't have to be like this! we can go home! Back to Arendelle-."

Ranger scowled, cutting her off "so you can drag me back and have murdered! No Elsa. I saw the looks of everyone in that room. They were staring at me like I was a monster! It won't matter what you do, they will come for me! You think you know fear? You don't know anything! You have never been alone! You have Anna you have Kristoff! You have Kai, Gerda…. You have everything! Do you know what its like to truly have no one to care for you… to truly be alone in this world, with nothing to rely on but yourself. That was my life! That was my curse. That was my…" he screamed fire bursting from his hands.

Elsa flinched, ready to chuck ice at him if needed be. But a moment later he calmed down. he breathed heavily. His hate filled eyes bored directly at her freezing her on the spot. He did have a point. Despite having been isolated from her family and caretakers growing up, they were still there. It was just that Elsa had been afraid of hurting everyone. But Ranger. He had no one. Was it truly that bad? Elsa wasn't sure what to believe.

He began speaking again. "I told you, I was very young when my powers manifested. The day they did, my parents changed. They chained me in my room by my feet! Like an animal! I never did understand it but I knew it was wrong. They gagged me so that I wouldn't make a sound and despite my protests, barely fed me! They started calling me demon, as if they were renouncing my name. I can't even remember the last time they called me by my birth name! Do you know how that feels, to lose your sense of identity?"

"When I was five, I escaped and killed all those kids, just as I told you. You know I was arrested. But you want to know the worst part? I was beaten… a bloody mess of a child, in front of the entire town. I begged my parents to help me but they just stood and watched. Laughing! With the entire crowd! The next thing I know I'm thrown in a cell, and I could never find it in me to escape. They tortured me for two long years. Whipped water boarded. They found any method to beat me within inches of death. How I survived…." He growled, "It was a sadistic life. They wanted nothing more than to cause me so much pain, never allowing me to die."

Elsa couldn't believe what she was hearing. This wasn't just torture… this was inhuman. Was humanity capable of such cruelty?

"When I turned seven, they decided they had enough fun with me… they dragged me back to the town, where the village leaders looked down on me and gave me the sentence for my crimes. Exile and banishment. They told me that if I was ever to return to the village, they would kill me on the spot. I was taken deep into the wilderness, where I was mortally wounded and tossed into a ditch! A ditch! I spent a night in that ditch. When I managed to climb out, I just ran. I ran until I found a town. I could barely stand, let alone survive. For the next three years I stole food to survive, until I was once again captured. But the man who arrested me… he was a former soldier in the kings army. He saw something in me and rather than lock me away in a cell, took me in as his apprentice, taught me the ways of the blacksmith and the sword. For once in my life, I was happy… until I turned twelve. Bandits showed up in the town threatening everyone. My master tried to stop them, but they murdered him in front of my eyes… and I just lost it… my powers killed everyone! The bandits and the whole town. I burned it to the ground! I killed the only family I had! I renounced everything. I took on the name Ranger, becoming a wandering blacksmith. The past seven years of my life have been nothing but me trying to escape the pain. Until I met you."

Elsa stiffened. He had spent around the same time of his life in as much pain as she had been. But he had it much worse

Elsa looked at him "Ranger… I'm sorry." She whispered. He was talking so angrily, so passionately, and she wasn't able to help him. Mostly because he wasn't letting her.

"Don't tell me how sorry you are for me! You don't get to be sorry!" Ranger screamed, "you lose everything and everyone you love! Tell me how if feels to be alone! Then you get to look in my eyes and tell me how sorry you are for me!" he screamed angrily at her. Elsa flinched, a patch of ice appearing at her feet. He was suddenly becoming very frightening, more so than anything she could have imagined.

"Ranger, Please! Let go of your hatred. If your powers are anything like mine, then you'll kill everyone in Arendelle. The sun… it could heat up to dangerous levels. You could kill everyone." She cried.

Ranger knew that was true. He controlled heat, but the atmosphere was affected by it as well. When the sun rose, it would be much hotter. That is if he continued to be angry at the world like he was at the moment

"Ranger, please. I can't understand what your life must have been like, but we can put that behind us. We can go home return to Arendelle… be a family…" Elsa said "Ranger… I love you… I always have ever since the day we met. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Please… come home with me." Elsa cried.

She was pouring all her love for Ranger into her plea. He was staring at her, lost. Then he gave her a tender smile.

"Elsa…. I love you too…." He said.

Then he stomped his foot on the ground creating a ring of fire around the both of them. Elsa gasped.. She looked at him. He was now giving her a angry glare.

"But your too late!"

* * *

**I am evil aren't I? well what were you expecting a happy ending? Ranger is angry, he is not just going to listen to Elsa. what will happen? **


	28. Death in the Family

**Can i just say this chapter is by far the saddest thing i've written? some of it is just so sad. Please tell me if i made you cry. i will feel so accomplished.**

**That being said some of you had question or remarks about the last chapter. so I will answer**

**TPFR- yes he wants to hurt her… but there is a reason.**

**N multiverser- No i don't think he will go back. Remember, Arendelle is in Norway. Ranger is from Italy. Would he want to take that trek again? I did toy with ideas for his parents to appear, but it geographically and logically just wouldn't make sense. Plus, he doesn't want to be a monster, killing for the sake of killing proves he is a monster.**

**Jaffa3- glad you caught the reference! There is another in this chapter.**

* * *

Elsa gasped as Ranger started to form a fireball in his hand, and suddenly threw it straight towards her. Elsa raised her hand in defense trying to block impending death. Thankfully her powers reacted to the danger and formed a barrier of ice in front of her. The fireball collided with the ice, causing a small explosion of steam. Elsa flew backwards, landing on the floor.

She struggled to get up, staring at Ranger heart broken. He was attacking her. The man she loved was attacking her, without restraint or mercy. She wasn't trying to hurt him at all; she just wanted him to come home with her. She would have protected him from everything and everyone who wished to harm him. She owed him that much for everything they had done together. Instead he was forcing, demanding that they fight as if they were enemies. The young Queen stood up, breathing heavily.

"Does it burn Elsa?" Ranger spat. "The heat of the sun. It's a curse." He said waving his hand. "But it's quite amazing. Isn't it?"

Elsa gritted her teeth. He was… even now he was so infuriating. There was no remorse. No pity. He was everything Elsa hoped he wasn't. Elsa shook her head "Ranger I will NOT FIGHT YOU!" she screamed. She couldn't bring herself to attack him. No matter how much he fought, she would not fight back.

Ranger frowned "I'm not giving you a choice in the matter, Elsa! There is only one way this ends. Either you die… or I do." He stomped his foot, causing a trail of fire to sped towards Elsa. Elsa jumped out of the way, rolling away from the attack. In the process she was left open for another attack. Ranger shot a fireball at her, but of course, Elsa's powers reacted creating another barrier for her protection. The barrier once again exploded, but this time Elsa used the steam to create a cover, making a snowman. She would not fight Ranger, but she needed to defend herself. The snowman was a good distraction.

Ranger huffed, scoffing at the idea of the snowman running towards him. It was not nearly as big or intimidating as marshmallow. Just as the snowman was about to pathetically tackle him he kicked it straight in the face, knocking it over. He then stomped on it, melting it with his flames. However as he looked up, Elsa was the one who tackled him instead. They fell to the ground, Elsa holding his wrists, trying to freeze them with ice.

She didn't want to attack him. She only wanted to restrain him. Bring him back to his senses. However it was in vain. He just gave her a grin, warming up his hands, melting the ice.

Elsa gritted her teeth, trying to match his attempt. But it was in vain. Fire would always beat ice, no matter how hard she tried.

She could feel his breath on her face, which would have been soothing if she wasn't trying to fight for her life. She attempted to peck his lips, as if doing so would bring Ranger back to her. However Ranger just grabbed her wrists and rolled over, putting him on top. Elsa gasped. As much fun as this was two weeks ago, she was not happy.

"Well, this looks familiar." He growled. Elsa felt herself blush. Now was not the time for this. She used her powers, causing a blizzard, which threw Ranger off of her, sending him flying through the ring of fire he created.

Despite the fact that he was trying to kill her, Elsa gasped, that attack could have seriously injured him. Worse… if it hit his heart. Elsa didn't want that to happen again

Elsa quickly got up, running towards the edge of the ring. She waved her hands sending another blizzard, which quenched the flames, burying it under snow. She ran through the snow, making her way to where Ranger was. He was lying on the floor seemingly unconscious. Elsa, without any regard for her safely ran towards him. Ranger opened his eyes, meeting Elsa's. Elsa stopped in her tracks, feeling chill go across her spine.

Ranger threw another fireball, at her. Unprepared Elsa tried to side step it, but it grazed her arm. Immense pain ripped across her arm. Elsa screamed, clutching the burn and she fell to her knees. Hot tears leaked down her face.

Ranger stood up, walking towards the young woman "pathetic… is this what you have been reduced to, your majesty?" the words tore at her heart, ripping it with every syllable she heard.

"You're no queen… you're so weak…" Elsa looked up at Ranger he was holding his hand out, readying yet another fireball. "Good bye... Elsa"

Elsa looked at the fireball that was to be her doom. In the mesmerizing blaze she saw her life flash before her eyes. Her birth. Her early life. The discovery of her powers. Anna. The night of the accident. Being locked in her room. The coronation. Meeting Ranger… A child… with green eyes.

"NO!" Elsa screamed raising her hand and instinctively fired a burst of snow. It hit Ranger, right in his heart. The blow was not enough however to stop his attack. The fire just grazed her head, burning it, but instead of setting her hair on fire, caused one of her platinum blond strands to turn black. Elsa collapsed clutching her head, whilst Ranger went flying backwards, zooming out of the castle, destroying the wall and onto the edge of the north mountain, just stopping short of plunging to his death. He clutched his chest, heavy with pain and he smiled "Elsa…" he said getting to his knees… at long last…

* * *

Elsa blinked, looking around. She was in her ice castle. How? How did she get here? The last thing she remembered was… dancing… she groaned clutching her head. She couldn't remember. There was a hole in the wall in front of her. Standing. She made her way outside of the castle, where she saw a body, lying close to the ravine. Immediately concerned she ran towards it. Getting close she saw it was a boy around her age, with black hair and red eyes. He had a smile on his face and he was laughing, a painful chocked laugh.

Elsa walked closer to him. He seemed… familiar. But she couldn't place his face or his name. "Who are you? Again? Its weird… I feel like I'm forgetting something really important."

The boy opened his mouth, his voice soft. "You'll be… better of now… Elsa." He collapse, but Elsa caught him in her arms however, a moment later, she spotted his legs begin to crystallize.

She gasped. It was just like when Anna was frozen. Unable to cover the fear in her voice she asked "I'm I… the one who did this to you?" her voiced wavered, unable to bear the thought of hurting someone innocent

The boy shook his head "no… it was my choice… to go away now…. better that… than to do nothing…. And live as a monster…. I don't belong here… in this world…" the boy brought his hand to his shoulder, grazing Elsa's hand "Elsa… I need you to do me a favor….

Elsa looked at the boy. She would do anything she could to help someone in need "all of those people down there…. Arendelle… tell them the truth…"

Elsa frowned "Arendelle… the truth." She wasn't sure exactly what that meant. However before she could respond any further, more ice appeared, encasing the boys legs. "It's too late… for me to undo my mistakes… but you can't… mourn for me… you can't…

He smiled "good bye… Elsa… sees you again… I'm glad… I got to meet you… oh. And of course… Anna and the others too. I love you…" he brought his hand up to Elsa's face, caressing her cheek. "Never forget… that's the truth…"

Elsa stiffened slightly when she felt his hand caress her cheek. But there was something familiar about this boys touch… why?

Her eyes widened as the memory came rushing back. As his hand fell from her face, Elsa grabbed it. "No!"

Ranger… he was dying… and it was all her fault. "Ranger! You can't leave me."

Ranger's eyes closed and he went limp in her arms as the ice finished encasing his body, breathing his final breath. Elsa felt a tear drip down her face. "Ranger" she whispered. However before Elsa could react the cliff shifted beneath her. She gasped. The cliff couldn't support her and Ranger's weight. However, before she could even attempt to move, she felt marshmallow grab her from behind, yanking her away, just as the cliff broke away, taking Rangers body with it.

Elsa gasped, feeling like her heart hand been squeezed from the inside and shattered. Ranger… she had killed him. She had frozen his heart and he had died… because she…

Hot tears fell down her face, and she buried her head into marshmallow, he held her close. Elsa killed him… she killed him… a pain paramount only to the death of her parents…

Elsa killed him.

With a heavy heart, Marshmallow climbed down the north mountain taking the heartbroken queen with him…

* * *

Anna waited outside the gates of Arendelle dressed in a winter coat. Elsa had been gone for far too long. She was supposed to convince Ranger to come back (though Anna wished that she had just left him)

Anna had done the same thing when Elsa had run off after having her powers discovered. But while Anna wasn't terrified of Elsa (or Ranger for that matter) the difference was the Ranger had killed everyone who had been involved in the deaths of Kayla and Erhard. The man had burned them all to death in one-way or another.

Caleb had taken all the bodies away, what they were going to do with them, Anna wasn't sure, but considering they were traitors, they weren't going to get a proper burial. Not that Anna cared. Men like that didn't deserve to live. Ranger had done the right thing, avenging the death of his friends.

No, Ana was not scared of Ranger… she was scared that in his hatred fueled rage he could hurt Elsa. Anna had already lost her once… she wasn't going to do it again. Screw being the Queen, Anna couldn't live without her sister in the world.

Kristoff walked up to Anna, a cup of hot chocolate in his hand "Anna… its cold… you'll freeze out here."

Anna scoffed "I've frozen before… this is nothing." She growled, "Elsa is still out there. I don't care if she thinks she can handle the cold… it's the heat I'm worried about."

Kristoff tried to smile, but it was wasted. "Anna… I don't mean to think he is a threat… he jumped out of a sled to save Elsa…. I don't think he is capable of even hurting her… of all people…"

Anna wanted to agree with him. But they both knew that they were fooling themselves. Ranger might have loved Elsa before, but they saw what he did to the traitors. Even if he loved Elsa, how could he not hurt her?

However as Anna looked in the distance she spotted a familiar figure walking towards her. She gasped. It was the giant snowman that Elsa created dubbed marshmallow by Olaf. She took off running towards him, hoping to see if Elsa was with him. Her heart leaped when indeed she saw Elsa buried in Marshmallows arms. Her eyes were closed and her arms were hung limply at her side. However as soon as she spotted her face, she knew something was wrong. Elsa's face was tear stained and a strand of her hair was black… what had Ranger done to her?

"Elsa Anna cried as she stopped short in front of Marshmallow. "Auntie" he said in his deep voice. Anna looked at him "Marshmallow quickly! Get her to the castle." She turned and sped off, marshmallow behind her.

* * *

Elsa felt groggy and her whole body was aching. She was covered in what felt like her sheets. That was odd… why was she in her bed… wasn't she supposed to be getting ready for… her eyes opened, She sighed, and took in her surroundings. Yep… this was her room. But what had happened that had caused her to stay here? She looked out the window. The sun was barely starting to reach the edge of the mountains. What day was it… she went dancing last night… it was the winter ball.

She sat up, but immediately sat back down. Her whole body was aching. What dancing move did she do last night that cause her to go and ache like this. All she did was dance.

She clutched her head. It still burned from… what was going on? Her memory felt so strange. She couldn't remember how this had happened. However before she could even move out of the bed, she heard Anna's voice beside her "Elsa" Elsa turned her head towards her younger sister… who was red eyed and tear stained. She immediately hugged her sister, who groaned from the hug. Elsa hugged back, before Anna pulled away.

"What happened" Elsa asked. Anna sighed. She wasn't sure what had happened. After all Elsa was the only one who knew "I was hopping that you could tell me." She said.

Elsa sighed, "I… went to see… Ra—Ra…" he voiced wavered. She couldn't remember. Who did she go to see? She remembered it being someone important.

" You went to see Ranger." Anna said, "but you came back and you were unconscious. Marshmallow was carrying you down."

Elsa frowned. What was Anna talking about? Ranger? Who was? Elsa's eyes widened memories came flooding back to her. Her first meeting with Ranger. Their first kiss…Their night of love… their fight.

"No… Nooo. Noooooooooooo!" Elsa screamed sending ice flying across the room, covering it in snow. Anna ducked, watching as Elsa threw a panic induced temper tantrum.

Elsa threw off the covers in her bed, before stumbling to the floor. She still felt so weak, but she didn't care. Covering her face with her hands. Elsa began to cry harder than she ever had before. She was a murderer. A monster. She had saved her kingdom at the cost of her heart.

"Ranger! Ranger!" Elsa screamed in pain "why… why did you make me do it! She shook violently, tears streaming down her face. She killed the only man she ever loved. Elsa. The only one who saw a man in pain, not the monster he believed himself to be. She had killed him…

Because he wanted to die…

Elsa screeched her voice reaching every corner of the castle "RANGER!" her voice boomed, causing Anna to jump. She then collapsed into sobs, ignoring Anna as she cried her heart out.

Anna walked up to Elsa running a hand through her sister's hair. Elsa seemed so broken. Ranger… was… he dead? Anna felt a tear trickle down her face. Not for Ranger, but for Elsa. What had she done? What did Ranger make her do? She fell to her knees, and wrapped her arms around Elsa drawing her older sisters head into her neck. "shh… Elsa… it's going to be ok." She whispered Anna wasn't sure if Elsa believer her word. Anna doubted that herself.

"I killed him… I killed him…" Elsa sobbed into Anna's shoulder. Anna kissed her sisters head "it wasn't your fault." Oh how Anna wished that was true… but only Elsa knew what had happened. Or maybe she didn't. She didn't even remember going to see Ranger.

So if Ranger was dead, no one knew how. All Anna knew was that Elsa felt that she was responsible for it.

"Elsa… it wasn't your fault" Anna repeated, much stronger this time. Unfortunately, her words did nothing to sooth Elsa, who continued to cry. She gripped Anna tightly, like a teddy bear.

Anna wasn't sure what she was going to be able to do to help Elsa. The last time Elsa was like this was when her parents died. Anna had wanted to help Elsa at the time, but Elsa was in her room, unwilling to let anyone in at the time. Then of course, Anna died , but that lasted all of a minute. Elsa had experienced losing a love one yet again, but even though Anna was here to help, there was nothing she could do to help her.

Elsa was always a strong woman. She made a very good queen. She was never prepared for this. Anna never had her heart broken like this. She never killed the one she loved.

Anna instead hugged Elsa closer to her, pecking her head with a kiss. She resolved to stay with Elsa until she stopped crying. From the looks of it would last for a while. But Anna didn't care. Elsa needed her.

As she held her, Anna noticed something. Elsa felt strangely warmer than usual. Anna knew that Elsa always felt cold. And there was that hair thing. Something was wrong. But right now, Elsa needed help, not to be even more worried. Anna frowned.

Outside, the sun rose, lighting the sky a bloody red. It wasn't burning, but it seemed to reflect the sadness that Elsa was feeling.

The sun was bleeding for Elsa on her birthday.

* * *

**Feel free to send me hate mail. I have a feeling i will get it.**


	29. Rise of the Snow Queen

**Finally. Well how are you doing folks? Hope you enjoyed the last chapter because I have some things to talk to you about involving the remainder of the story. Yes Ranger is gone, but he still has a role to play in the story. No, that does not mean he is alive. If you want to believe that you can, it just doesn't mean that he is. **

**Also, please go check out this author "ThePatheticFanFictionReader" she has been one of my most faithful followers and she is writing a great story to boot. Have fun!**

* * *

Anna thought she knew depression when she and Elsa were separated. Now she knew that depression was a broken heart that could never be healed. Elsa's 22nd birthday was nothing short of terrible. There wasn't a party; there was no birthday cake. There was only Elsa and her frozen wasteland of a bedroom. She hadn't even left it, for she was crying. Anna never heard Elsa cry so much. The only time she was aware of something like this was when she was frozen over (Anna was sure Elsa cried when their parents died, but she didn't exactly hear it). Ana had been forced to leave the room not long after Elsa started crying, since of course, Elsa didn't want to freeze Anna into an ice cube while accidently setting an eternal winter in her bed chambers.

It had been several days since Rangers death. Everyone was gone, returning to there own country with quite a story to tell. Anyone who remained in Arendelle was dealig with the loss that had affected everyone in the castle.

Anything important that Elsa was supposed to do today was now being handled by Kai, and it was pretty apparent that it would last for much longer. Any attempt at talking to Elsa was met with a loud anguish filled roar that sounded a lot like "go away" as done by a dragon. Even sweet adorable Olaf was unable to escape her wrath. He tried entering the room only to be thrown out by a blast of ice.

Anna of course hated seeing Elsa isolated the way she was. Elsa didn't deserve this. Then again, Anna wasn't exactly expecting Ranger to spit fire like dragon and force Elsa to go after him.

Speaking of Ranger… Anna couldn't believe what she heard when Elsa told her that she had straight up murdered Ranger. What had happened only Elsa knew, but she wasn't able to tell anyone because she would either scream at them or shoot them with a blast of ice. Needless to say, Anna was shocked. Ranger, as obnoxious as he was to Elsa on some days and how broken he seemed on others, was someone she couldn't believe was gone. Whatever he did… he certainly didn't deserve death.

Then there was the question of Elsa's hair. It was virtually identical to Anna's when she had her head frozen by Elsa when she was five. So why wasn't Elsa feeling any different, if not a little warmer. Her powers were still working just fine and she wasn't acting at all different. Except for the massive depression that she was going through.

Anna wasn't exactly sure what to do. She wanted to help Elsa, but Elsa wasn't allowing anyone to even try and help her. She also wanted to at least find out what exactly happened to Ranger and his body, but Elsa, in one of her last moments of sanity, had forbid any mention of Ranger or a search for his body. It seemed that she had no intention of ever wanting anything to do with him, seeing as how he was, however indirectly, responsible for her current condition.

Of course Anna found this slightly unfair. Ranger was her friend too. He wasn't royalty or of any importance to the city of Arendelle, but to the royal family? He was a friend an ally, and (Anna was still uncertain about this) a lover to the Queen her self. He deserved at least some recognition, at least from those that cared about him. but Elsa was having none of it. She was in her room crying about how she killed Ranger, while everyone else struggled to pick up the pieces for her.

As for the traitors, they had been unceremoniously thrown into a hole, and buried deep in the forests, in an unmarked grave. It was more than they deserved, but at least they would never be found.

So, as Anna saw it, Elias was getting more recognition that Ranger was. Ranger didn't even have a burial. That is, if his body was still on the north mountain. But again Anna didn't know, and Elsa wasn't allowing anyone to go looking for him. Maybe marshmallow buried his body and that's why Elsa wasn't allowing anyone to go looking for him. Still…

As of now, Anna was in her own room with Kristoff, just blankly staring at the wall. Olaf was there too, looking quite glum. Whether or not it was because he could feel the tension or because he was still upset Elsa threw him out of her room no one knew, but he was still as sad as everyone else. After that ordeal everyone had retreated to Anna's room, just to comfort each other in the time of loss and pain.

Misery loves company. Elsa however was a black hole of despair. Worst of all, there was nothing that Anna could do, since Elsa was refusing any sort of help.

She gritted her teeth, taking the nearest thing on her desk and throwing it against the wall, letting out a scream. Kristoff and Olaf stared at her. "That's it, I'm going to go talk to her! I know that she's hurting, but I will not stand to see Elsa like this, not again!"

She stood up, but Kristoff grabbed her shoulder "Anna, I don't think…" she smacked his shoulder away "enough!" she cried, stomping out of the room, making her way to Elsa's room. She threw open the door. The room was still covered in ice and snow, almost causing Anna to slip as she entered the room. Thankfully however she was able to stand firm. Elsa was curled up on the floor, silently staring at the wall, tears silently streaming down her face

"Make it stop…." Make it stop…" she moaned in despair. She had finally cracked. She took no notice of Anna entering the room. She was holding a strand of her hair, the one that was black. Her face was twisted in pain.

Anna's heart broke and she carefully made her way into the room and sat down next to Elsa gently stroking her head. As she did so, her hand rubbed against the black strands on her head.

She was not expecting the result she got. As soon as she touched the black strands, her own vision went black.

* * *

_Anna was falling. Somewhere… she couldn't breathe, or even move. All she could do was fall. She fell until she landed on something that felt a lot like dirt. She sat up, groaning. She looked around. This was… odd. She was in a village. One that certainly wasn't Arendelle. The castle was gone. And the houses were worn and the area much smaller. There were trees and shrubs surrounding the area. _

_Where was she? She got up and walked in a random direction. To her surprise she noticed several people. "Excuse me!" She cried, running towards them. They didn't move. They just continued talking to one another. Ana walked towards them "excuse me?" she said a little angry that they were ignoring her. She reached out to grab one of the men, but to her shock her hand went right through him. Horrified, Anna pulled her hand back. What was that? She felt her breath hitch. She backed away, before turning and running, making her way towards a house, opening the door and slamming it shut. She breathed in heavily, trying to calm her erratic heartbeat. What was going on?_

_However her thoughts were interrupted by a loud "stop!" that voice…. She knew that voice… Elsa! Was she hurt? It came from inside this house. She ran towards a door that she was sure she heard it come from. Opening the door however, she gasped and covered her mouth._

_Elsa was on her knees screaming, "stop!" as she watched a little boy no more than five hung up by his arms being whipped by a man holding a whip. His screams were blood curdling, causing Anna's blood to freeze every time he opened his mouth. "How does it feel demon? Do you feel pain?" the man said as he brought down the whip against the boys back. "Please! Stop! Help me!" the boy begged. His back was a bloody mess of old skin scars and blood. _

_The man growled, "Your parents will not come for you! You are the son of the devil!" he brought the whip down again, eliciting another roar of pain. Anna stood there, stunned that this was even happening in front of her._

_She ran towards the people, ready to smack them but she of course went right through them. "Leave him alone!" Ana cried, but her cries went unanswered._

_Suddenly she felt someone tug her away and her vision went dark once again._

* * *

Anna woke up tumbling back ward. Elsa it seemed finally woke up too because she yelled, sitting up. Both of the girls were breathing heavily.

"Anna…" Elsa said, rubbing her eyes. "What… happened?" she asked. Anna just stared at her. That vision. That image she saw… what type of horror was that? He was just a little boy. What type of torture did a child deserve? If that was punishment for something minor… what was going on?

Anna looked at Elsa "you don't remember?" she asked. How could anyone forget that? That was the most sadistic thing that Anna had ever seen.

Elsa frowned she cold still vividly recall the nightmare. It was as vivid as when Ranger himself had described it "that was Ranger." She said, "When he was just a child Anna. His parents allowed him to be taken away. They abused him after his powers were revealed. They tortured him… for two long years… until the finally decided to let him go… just to let him die alone."

Ranger… that was Ranger?

_"Can you tell me about your home?"_ Anna had asked him that. That was home?! No wonder he didn't want anything to do with his past. It was terrible.

That being said, how could he have endured such treatment? How could no one have helped him? He was whipped for two long years according to Elsa. What else did they do to him?

Anna could never have imagined such treatment. It was more that disgusting it was inhuman. They discriminated him just for being different .was this what their parents were afraid would happen to Elsa if the people had gotten their hands on her?

Ranger had lived it.

"Elsa." Anna said, her voice wavering. Elsa bit her lip. How was she supposed to explain that vision? Ever since Ranger had burned her head, she had nightmares of that moment, but also had nightmares about things that she wasn't aware of. Namely the suffering that Ranger had gone through since childhood. It had started when she was unconscious after the fight. But every time she closed her eyes she could hear Ranger cries, both past and present.

Now he was gone and it was all her fault. But he was still there torturing her with these memories. What was she supposed to do about it? She had taken notice of her hair after she forced Anna and the others to leave the room. Needless to say, she hadn't liked that. Why, because she was now in the same situation as Anna had been 13 years ago. However, unlike Anna, who had been in danger, Elsa felt fine, a little warmer, but fine. Maybe her powers gave her some measure of protection against Rangers Still she was thinking of going to visit the trolls to make sure that she wasn't in any danger. Or she would if she still wasn't moping because of her part in Rangers death.

Elsa looked away "leave Anna." she said "I don't want to accidently hurt you…" she said

Anna looked at Elsa, stuck between sympathizing and pitying her. Elsa obviously took Rangers death the hardest, considering how close they were "Elsa… please. I don't know what happened or how much Ranger meant to you…" bad move.

Elsa snapped her head towards Anna, her blue eyes blazing with anger. Snow swirled around her, causing a mini blizzard. Anna cringed; Elsa never gave her that look before. "He was my…. I loved him Anna! You know that. He was hurt. More than anyone I have ever known! But strong…. I tried to help him as best I could. You saw what happened to him! No one helped him. Anyone who did died! For once he had someone to love him… Me! Now he's gone, thinking he didn't deserve a life!"

Anna shrunk back, scared by Elsa's words. She had heard Elsa say those words before, when they had come to an agreement that Elsa was only attracted to Ranger. Now some weeks later, Elsa was telling Anna that she had always loved him, in the same way that Anna loved Kristoff. She had seen them giving glances to each other. The sane look that Kristoff and Anna shared every once in a while. Only now, Elsa was dealing with the flip side. Losing the one that you loved, gone forever.

"Elsa… I'm sorry. I wish I could have helped…"

Elsa gritted her teeth fed up with the conversation. She just wanted to be left alone. "GET OUT!" she screamed, before bursting into tears again. Anna shakily stood up and walked out of the room, making her way back to Kristoff. So much for getting Elsa back on her feet. Anna knew that a broken heart took time to heal, since she spent a large amount of time grieving over her parents. She wanted to help Elsa, but what could she do if Elsa was not allowing anyone to help her?

She needed to help her, whether her sister liked it or not.

* * *

Elsa sat in her room, her face in her hands. She was stronger than this. She was strong and independent. She didn't need a man. Not for a while anyway. Elsa had always believed in marriage for love, but also believed she would end up in a loveless marriage.

Then Ranger showed up, turning her life upside down, making her confused and flustered and she quickly fell in love with him. Not that her council would have agreed to a marriage to a simple blacksmith or solider under her command. Not that she would have cared. She wasn't going to let some prince that she barely knew even attempt to romance her (that didn't happen because Ranger had scared them off after the ordeal with his powers)

That being said, since her council was effectively in control of Arendelle while Elsa was spiraling in depression, they were most likely going to find a suitable prince to help Elsa (in the meantime Kai and even Anna, (who was effectively second in command anyway) were going to have to run the kingdom, unless Elsa managed to pull her self together.

Which didn't seem like it was going to happen anytime soon. Her heart was too broken to heal. At least in a way that screamed 'I'm back and better than ever'. Elsa knew that she couldn't just go off an abandon Arendelle because she was sad. Anna would make a fine Queen, (despite her clumsiness) it just wasn't her job. It was Elsa's, as first in line for the throne, she was the one to be Queen. Normally, Elsa wouldn't really go and play that card, but it was a valid point. Besides ho stupid would it be if Elsa just left her duties because of this? it would make her the worst ruler in all of Arendelle's history. So for the sake of pride, she wasn't going to go down without a fight.

Elsa heaved air into her lungs, desperately trying to calm down. She needed to be stronger than this for herself and Ranger. Ranger had wanted to die, she had granted his wish. Sure she may not have agreed with it, but its what he wanted.

Then again, what about what she wanted! She had feelings too. Did Ranger think about that before he selfishly had Elsa, the one who loved him most, send him to his death? He had left her to suffer with that fact while he was in the ground.

She growled, letting her hands hand to her side, before her face twisted into a snarl and she threw a snowball at the wall, which made a loud smack as it hit the wall.

"Ranger! Why did you have to make me kill you!" she screamed her voice booming with rage. Why couldn't they just talk about it? No he had to invoke a death match than ended with him dying.

She knew that he had a rough childhood, but weren't the past few weeks they had been together enough to at least try and make a better life with her? She would have protected him. She would have…

She blushed, gently rubbing her stomach. She would have married him.

She didn't care what her council thought. She would rather remain unmarried with Anna's children as her heirs than marry anyone else. If the council didn't like that, then she would freeze them rather than enter a loveless marriage just because they wanted her to get married. She might have wanted children, but that was before Ranger had died.

She stood up, waving her hands. Instantly her room thawed. Without a moment to lose she walked out of her room.

* * *

**There is more to come, because Elsa will have to deal with a lot more.**


	30. Elsa's grief

**Finally. Sorry for the long wait. I was researching grief and depression, thanks to "ThatPatheticFanfictionReader" so a shout out to her for that. This tackles more grief than depression, as well as other things. So please be honest if I did a good job portraying a grieving Elsa.**

**Now, one or two guests have expressed hope that Elsa is pregnant. This chapter leaves it open ended for now because there is a slight problem with Elsa being pregnant. Frozen Fever. Now I can already here everyone thinking "What? How could Frozen Fever interfere with Elsa having a baby?" Well the answer is simple. Elsa would have conceived her child in early December. Nine months later would make it September when she had her baby. Frozen Fever takes place in July. The problem comes from Elsa being roughly seven months pregnant by then. Would Elsa really be able to all the things she did in Frozen Fever while having a cold and being pregnant? So I don't know if I should make her pregnant based on that.**

**Also warning for moments of severe child abuse in this chapter. Its not really ****pleasant.**

* * *

Elsa walked into her council chamber, a look of stone on her face and ice trailing behind her. Her eyes were dead and she walked like a woman who lost everything. Which she had, but her council of course didn't really know that. They just thought that she was upset over losing a good friend, as well as recuperating from her battle with him.

In all honesty, the council didn't care about Rangers demise or how it was affecting Elsa. With the exception of Kai and Zodrian. Kai was upset that Elsa was hurting the way she was, where as Zodrian resigned from his commission and left Arendelle. Whether it was by the grief of his son's death, or the disgust that his son attempted to usurp the throne from Elsa no one knew. It was very sudden, but Kai never the less accepted the resignation.

As a result, Joran, his younger brother gladly took up the role of Elsa's military and scientific advisor; as way of honoring his brother. While not exactly skilled in the ways of a warrior, Joran had some experience.

As Elsa entered the room, the temperature dropped tremendously, as if all the happiness was sucked out of the room. Elsa made her way to her seat and sat down, not even acknowledging her council. The room went deathly silent.

Elsa for her part looked around the room. "Well..." she snapped "is there anything you wish to discuss with me this morning or are you just going to stare at me all day!" she all but yelled.

Everyone flinched, half expecting Elsa to unleash a torrent of snow on them. With that crazed look in her eye, that seemed like a faintly distinct possibility. Kai who was the closet to her, wisely did not ask what was wrong, but instead stated, "We were just discussing possible ways of restoring the castle after…" Elsa shot him a look, freezing him on the spot. He gulped. Kai knew that look quite well. Even though he had the right to talk back to Elsa (in the sense of being her guardian) he knew that the wrong word would most likely send Elsa into a angry queen rage.

"After it was destroyed during last weeks incident." he said. He studied her face for any sort of reaction, but she didn't even budge. She turned back to her council and said, "do it efficiently. That is all that is required." Her voice was cold and left no room for any argument "restore it as best as you can; like nothing ever happened."

The council nodded "yes Queen Elsa…."

Elsa then picked up one of the documents that her council had out for her. Elsa always liked to have what she wanted to discuss with her council on hand with her. However as soon as she read what was on this particular parchment, it instantly froze in her hand and in a moment of quiet rage, clenched the frost cover paper in her hand, effectively breaking it in half, startling everyone in the room. "What is the meaning of this?" she growled

In all her time grieving she had forgotten about the reason she had the winter ball in the first place. Rather, why her council wanted the ball in the first place. Suitors. Apparently there were still several suitors who were requesting for her hand in marriage, even after the fiasco that had occurred.

Kai cleared his throat "it's a marriage proposal your majesty it—"

"no…" Elsa growled standing up. "I refuse to get married. I will not allow Arendelle to be ruled by a stuck up prince, whose only function…" she emphasized the word function "is to provide Arendelle with a future prince or princess. A duty that the princess and her consort could fulfill"

Without a moment to lose, she strode out of the council room "if anyone needs me, I will be in my study. She slammed the door shut, freezing it in ice.

Elsa strode down the hallway angrily stomping her way to her study, trailing ice as she went. She couldn't believe the audacity of anyone who was even trying to propose to her. One. She never would consider marrying a man she just met. Two. She never did meet anybody at the party because of the events that took place. Three. She was never going to betray her love for Ranger, even if he was dead. She had allowed him to touch her, to make her feel the pleasure that she had only ever read about (not counting the 'talk' her mother had given her when she hit puberty) did she really want to throw away he precious memories of their one night, by tainting them with another man.

That being said… what if she was pregnant? It had been a few weeks since… that night. Elsa counted the days since her last period and so far, it hadn't come. not that she would have cared anyway. She had been much to upset to even notice.

But if she was pregnant, how was she ever going to explain that to anyone. The child would be in no simple terms, a bastard child. An unworthy heir to the throne. They would see Elsa was an unworthy ruler, willing to do whatever with whomever she wanted to.

And what fate would be fall the child? Ranger had been shunned by his community, for being different. True Elsa would protect her child, if she would ever have one from the scorn that its father had received. Didn't mean that she wanted such things to happen in the first place.

But the worst part would be explaining it to Anna. Anna, as far as Elsa knew hadn't been taken to bed before (though technically Elsa wasn't either), because Elsa had forbid Kristoff and Anna from any of those activities until they were married. Anna might not be one to always follow the rules, but there were things that she wouldn't do because of how unsettling or dangerous the consequences would be.

Elsa groaned, instinctively rubbing the black hair on her head. She could reel a headache coming on. This was just too much to think about.

"shouldn't you be sitting down your majesty?" a familiar voice mocked her.

Elsa flinched looking around. There was no one nearby. She walked on, confused by the sudden moment. She opened the door to her study and slammed it shut once again, this time encasing it in ice.

She sat at her desk and began furiously scribbling on her work.

* * *

Much later, as she finished her last paper, she screamed, throwing the quill across the room before standing up and slamming her palms onto the desk , covering it in ice.

She couldn't take it anymore. Here she was trying to do her job, but she was just feeling so angry! He could barely concentrate she was so upset. She hadn't even finished more than a few papers in the time she was in her office!

"Whoa, someone's upset." The voice said again. Elsa jumped and turned, before freezing. Standing there was… Ranger! He had a familiar grin on his face. His body had changed too. No longer were his eyes red as the blazing fires he wielded. They were green and full of life, his hair the color of the earth that he walked.

"Ranger…" Elsa said walking towards him, before jumping at him, wrapping her limb around his torso and kissing him senseless. He embraced her , kissing her cheeks her nose her eyes, and finally her mouth.

Tears went down Elsa's face as she kissed back. He was here. In her arms kissing her, loving her. He wasn't dead… he was here!

"Ranger…" she moaned. She held him tightly "please don't leave me…"

Ranger kissed her cheek and behind her ear, before saying "its too late for me…"

Elsa opened her eyes and much to her horror, Rangers eyes were red once again and he was scowling. He took his hand and grabbed her throat, instantly burning it.

Elsa thrashed in his grip, but once again he was too strong. Every fiber of her being was on fire as if he was burning her from the inside out.

"Ranger! Please! NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Elsa woke up screaming. She was still at her desk in her study, papers either thrown onto the floor or frozen, since once again, she managed to cover the room in snow and ice. She breathed in heavily, once again feeling the headache setting in. she stood up. She couldn't do this… she felt sweaty and nauseous, the strength in her body leaving her feeling weak the nightmare… it had scared her. it was what Ranger could have done to her during their fight. Granted that didn't happen, nor did he want to hurt her, since the whole point was to kill him, but still. Looking out her window she saw that night had already come in. That meant she must have been sleeping for several hours. She walked to her door (melting the ice) and left the room, ready for a bath.

* * *

Elsa, rather than have her servants warm up a bath for her (since she was trailing ice all around her, no one wanted to go near her, afraid she would snap at them) elected to do it herself. She turned on the water, filling the bath, whilst making sure to heat it up to a more soothing temperature.

With a sigh, she slipped out of her dress, and undergarments, before dipping herself into the water, which came to just under her neck, leaving only that and her head exposed. She leaned back into the water, trying to relax. The water however did little to sooth her and instead, her headache only seemed to increase. She reached for her head, but her body just felt so tired. Her arm just fell limply by her side.

"What…" she slurred her words, before her head fell back.

* * *

_Elsa found herself in a bright room, with only two people in the room, a man in a woman. Much to Elsa's horror, the woman looked like she was giving birth. She was lying on her back, screaming in agony while her husband (or so Elsa assumed) was in between her legs, coaching her on how to breath._

_Elsa felt herself gag and she looked away, covering her ears to block out the sound of the woman's screaming. She could hear the woman cursing her spouse, screaming obscenities that Elsa would never have thought of using herself. Apparently that's what woman thought of at moments like this._

_Elsa blanched. If she was pregnant…this is what she would have to go through. She made her mother do that? Anna would have to do this? she knew child birth was painful, but oh my god, seeing it made it feel worse than she originally thought it would._

_The woman continued to scream while Elsa fell to her knees, being overwhelmed. She knew that if she was pregnant, she would have no choice but to go through this event, at least in nine months, but just watching it was enough to make her wish she wasn't pregnant whatsoever. Oh why did she have to have sex with Ranger that nigh. She blamed it on the fact they were both overwhelmed with emotion. Darn it!_

_The man tried to help his wife, but she just continued to scream at him, telling him they would never get pregnant again._

_A few painful minutes later (apparently they were farther along in the process than Elsa thought) the sounds of a baby were making itself known. The shrill cries were enough to make Elsa open her eyes and she let loose a tender smile. The woman was propped up against the wall, holding a naked baby boy, from what Elsa could tell._

_"What are we going to name him?" the father asked._

_The woman looked at him and opened her mouth, but no sound came out. At that moment a surge of anger coursed through Elsa's heart and the next moment her vision went black._

_The next thing Elsa knew she was staring at the face of a little boy, no older than three. He had a grin on his face the size of the north mountain and he was staring at Elsa in a way that vaguely reminded her of Olaf_

_She stared at him. he was roughly about as high as her knee and he seemed to have a positive energy to him that was similar to the one that Anna had._

_"Hi! What's your name?!" he cried out loudly._

_Elsa did a double take. What?" she stood up, looking around? She was in a rather tiny room, with the only thing in it being a cot lying on the floor. With said child in the cot. He was gripping his toes and staring at Elsa "your pretty! Like an angel!" he gushed at her_

_Elsa blushed. Thank you. She patted the boy's head. "What's your name little one?" she asked. She knew that it had to be the same child that she just saw being born but still she wasn't able to get his name because she blacked out before hand._

_ The boy just shrugged " I'm a knight! Names are not important!" he told her. Elsa giggled, "then I shall have to call you sir knight!" she laughed_

_The child giggled "knight of the flame!" he said waving his hands. Fire burst out from his palm, but unlike Ranger, whose fires was wild and shapeless; this flame took on the little shapes of animals, anything from a butterfly to a lion. _

_Elsa gasped, marveling at the beauty of the fiery little shapes taking up the room… she had always seen fire as destructive, but this…. this was beautiful._

_At that moment however the door burst open, revealing the boys parents. The child gasped an instantly the shapes that took form vanished, turning into little more than cinders on the floor_

_The parents gasped, looking at what remained of the boy's antics. Instantly their faces morphed into anger_

_"What was that boy!" his father screamed, marching up to the boy and grabbing him by his grubby little shirt. The child screamed wresting in his fathers grip. The man slapped the boy across the face. "Tell me!"_

_"I was… playing!" the boy screamed, his voice reaching higher decibels as tears began to form in his eyes._

_Another slap, causing the child to scream even louder "shut it boy!" the father yelled, before throwing his son down "we have told you! No fires!" he then stomped out of the room with his wife. _

_The boy curled up into a ball "not the chain not the chain…" he moaned._

_The man stomped into the room again, holding a chain and a gag. The child shakily stood up, before attempting to run past his father, but the man violently kicked his son in the stomach sending him flying. He slammed into the wall with a sickening crack._

_No!" Elsa screamed, running towards the boy. She bent down and gently touched his chest he was alive. However before she could even attempt to move him, the father grabbed his son by his neck, before taking the gag and shoving it into the boy's mouth. The boy attempted to scream, but the gag was making it impossible. He then took the chain and attached to the boys wrists, before throwing the other end to the ceiling, laving the boy to dangle. He struggled briefly, making noises that sounded like he was begging_

_Another slap to the face._

_The mother came in, holding, much to Elsa's horror. A dagger. She gave it to the father, who the took the weapon and sliced it across the boys arm, eliciting a scream_

_"Leave him alone!" Elsa screamed as she reached for the boy, but a moment later her vision went black _

* * *

Elsa woke once again, screaming in horror as she felt pain slice across the same arm. Her screams startle Anna, who was sitting beside her.

"Elsa!" she cried.

Elsa looked around. She was once again in her bed. Wasn't she in the bath? She gulped, before taking the covers and carefully peeled them off. She was wearing a bathrobe. Ok well at least she wasn't full on naked.

However as she sat there. She began to shiver, feeling quite cold for the first time in her life. She had had those nightmares before, but this time, it felt so real… and for the first time… she felt the pain. She looked at her arm, which still burned from the slice the boy had received. There was no blood, but it felt like it was on fire.

That was the first time she ever saw Rangers parents hurt him. she had nightmares about him being assaulted in the mental asylum, but his own parents attacked him? What type of monsters were capable of harming their own child, there own flesh and blood?

Then there was the question of his powers. The Ranger she knew was not capable of such beauty, such life.

Then there was the question of his name. His name had been spoken in the memories, but it was silent. She was experiencing his memories, but the memories were twisted in such a manor that anything that mentioned his name was just gone. Like it was a poison. To which Elsa knew that Ranger did consider it such, since he had abandoned his former name.

She turned to Anna, "did…." Anna shook her head. We found you passed out in the tub. So I pulled you out and dressed you. You were screaming for a few minutes in bed just now."

Suddenly, she gasped at her. "Elsa… your hair…" Elsa grabbed her hair, the black strand in her hand "Anna, I know I have that. Ranger gave it to me."

Anna however went to Elsa's desk and grabbed a mirror "no Elsa… a strand… its brown!"

Elsa's eyes widened and she grabbed the mirror. Looing in the mirror, she saw indeed one of her white strands was now a dark shade of brown.

* * *

**If anyone is confused let me explain. Elsa is having visions of Ranger because its her interpreting Rangers past, based on the information she knows, while at the same time revealing things about his past that explain certain changes in his abilities. In the past, Ranger was capable of performing deeds of beauty, like Elsa was. However the many years of abuse and neglect have twisted his thinking into only seeing fire as ****destructive. Remember when Zuko lost his stuff in Avatar the last airbender and went to find the true meaning of fire bending? Its the same with Ranger. His control comes from anger and hate, but thats not the true source of his powers.**

**That being said, what happened to Elsa? Let me give you a hint. Not good. **


	31. Sacrifice

**Sigh. I'm not happy folks. I've hit a point where creative liberties must be taken... This chapter starts something that I am MORALLY against in terms of life, but it is the best way for the story to go. Very confusing I know, but you'll now it when it happens.**

* * *

Elsa stared in horror at the dark brown strand of hair that oh so clearly resembled her mothers. It starkly contrasted the rest of her platinum blond hair as well as the black strand on the other side of her head. Her mouth went dry. What was going on? She could understand the black strand that Ranger had given to her; it was the exact same situation that she had caused with Anna, but this? She had no words.

She ran a hand through the brown locks, dropping the mirror. She stood up, her mind racing. Did Ranger do this to her? He had hit her head with fire the sane way that she had hit Anna with ice.

Her mind flashbacked to the two situations that were so eerily similar

_"Your ok, Anna. I've got you…" the eight year old Elsa said as she cradled her younger sisters head in her lap, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. They were just playing she hadn't meant to hurt her sister the way she did. But it had happened and now the normally bubbly Anna was laying ice cold on the floor, unmoving, a white strand in her hair._

_the nearby door to the ball room opened and in rushed the king and Queen. "Elsa!" her father screamed, while her mother gasped "what have you done! This is getting out of hand!" he cried before running towards the two young girls._

_Elsa stared at her parents before burying her face in Anna's hair "It was an accident…. I'm sorry Anna." she whispered, before her mother gathered Anna in her arms "she's ice cold…" she said, concern in he voice_

Ice cold… Elsa touched her own forehead, noticing for the first time how warm she felt… she felt almost unnaturally warm, feeling sweat forming on her forehead. Her breaths suddenly coming out in short gasps

_Ranger stood over Elsa his hand extended aimed directly at her "this is what you've been reduced too, your majesty." Ranger growled, pure malice in his voice "you're no Queen.. You're so weak.."_

_His hand blazed with the fire he so effortlessly wielded. The fire he called his curse, the fire that had ruined his life. He was going to use it on her, without mercy without restraint. Like a monster…_

_Elsa watched the fire, feeling the heat in the close proximity. Ranger was the man she loved; she couldn't bring herself to hurt him; but here he was threatening; no willing to take her life without remorse. After the weeks of getting to know one another, their night of love and their secret kisses… he was going to throw it all away._

_Elsa felt visions dance across her mind. Her early life… the night of the accident. Her isolation. Her coronation. Meeting Ranger. The night they confessed. A wedding… and a child…_

_"No!" Elsa cried raising her hand, aiming directly at his heart. She fired a blast of ice hitting him in the heart. He gave a spasm, his hand flailing, before the fireball flew from his hand, grazing her head._

_Intense heat burnt through her head, almost making her scream in pain. She collapsed to the ground, her vision going dark. _

How could she be so stupid? She was in the same boat that Anna was in back then… now! How could she not have noticed it before? Her fever suddenly seemed more pronounced now. All off a sudden she felt a sharp pain in her heart, like an intense heat had suddenly burned its way into her body, almost making her collapse to her knees. As it was she grabbed her breast groaning in pain, leaning against the wall for support.

It was just like when Anna had her head frozen. Just like when she froze Anna's heart and Rangers. Her powers might have given her some form of protection during the week, but it seemed like her time was close to or perhaps already running out. If she didn't find a way to fix this soon, she might literally burn from the inside out.

There was only one way to try fixing this. She had to get to the trolls. They were her only hope now. If they were able to help Anna after her head was frozen, then surely they could help her when her head was burnt.

Elsa turned to Anna. She felt scared, more scared than she had ever felt in her life. "Anna… We need to get to the trolls… Now!" she screamed, quickly running to her Sister and pushing her out of the room.

Anna was confused by Elsa's sudden change in attitude. First she was so confused and now she was acting like Anna normally would while going on a sugar rush. Before she could even question what Elsa was thinking, she was shoved out of the room.

"Don't come in!" Elsa screamed from the inside. Sure Anna had seen her naked whilst dragging Elsa out of the tub, but Elsa didn't want Anna to see her whilst awake (because it was already awkward anyway).

Inside the room Elsa stripped herself of her robe, exposing her naked body, before slipping on undergarments and a casual outfit. Now was not the time to play royal dress up, if her suspicions were confirmed by the trolls, she needed to be efficient, not nicely dressed.

Afterwards Elsa all but ran from the room, dragging Anna with her. Without a moment to lose, she ran to the stables.

* * *

Kristoff was having quite the day. After managing to deliver some ice late last night, he could finally have some time to himself. He was exhausted because carrying several large blocks of ice could be so draining on the muscles. He was currently lying on top of a haystack, curled next to Sven (who was just as tired as he was if to be quite honest.), ready to just sleep in this morning (for once he was willing to just pull an Anna today; it wasn't like she got up early anyway) and was about to get ready to doze off when…

"KRISTOFF!" a voice that sounded remarkably like the Queens went off in his ear, startling the reindeer king. He screamed (quite girlishly, as he would later find out) jumping several feet in the air, before falling flat on his face. Ouch that was going to leave quite the mark. He groaned before pushing himself off the ground. As much as he would like to go back to sleep, he needed to get ready for the queen. What he wasn't expecting was to see Elsa looking so frightened with half her hair turning brown like Anna's did white only a few months ago. Next to her was Anna herself who was wearing the same frightened look.

Immediately he could tell something was wrong but before he could even think to ask the question, Elsa grabbed him by his arm "sled! Trolls now!" she screamed.

Kristoff, needles to say was quite confused "Elsa… " He cried "what's wrong?" he wasn't sure why he was even bothering to ask her that at this point. Elsa's hair was changing color like Anna's did. Except it wasn't going all black like Anna's had gone all white. It was still white, but with the exception of the black strand, her hair was turning brown

Elsa glared at him "now is not the time for questions Kristoff!" she cried, dragging him to the sleigh "just take us to the trolls! I don't have a whole lot of time to explain, and I can't afford to waste any. So please just take us to your family right now so I can fix this!" she screamed at him angrily!

Sven, noticing the commotion (and wanting to avoid the wrath of the said angry snow queen that had eyes screaming bloody murder at his best friend) quickly stood and galloped to the sled, getting ready and as soon as al of the occupants were in the sled, he took off towards the troll haven.

* * *

To say that everyone was worried was an understatement. Not long after Sven managed to get moving, Elsa fell unconscious, her fever overwhelming her. Now she was almost lifeless, her body heating up to unimaginable levels. Whenever Anna touched her, her hand felt like it was on fire. Anna was no doctor, but she knew that Elsa wouldn't be able to survive much longer like this. Elsa was naturally a cold person, feeling her like this (as hot as Ranger might have been) was just wrong on so many levels, not to mention, because Elsa was naturally colder than most, this fever might be a little more severe than if Anna had this happening to her.

"Elsa… please hold on…" she said, running her hand over Elsa's forehead. They weren't to far from the troll haven (Sven was really pushing the limits of his speed). The question to be had was, would they be able to get there in time? Anna was able to survive for maybe a few hours after Elsa had frozen her heart. Elsa had been able to survive for much longer, but only because her powers kept the heat at bay. Now her time was running out.

Anna bit her lip. She had noticed Elsa's feverish mood before, back when Elsa first cane home. How could she not have realized it sooner? If she had, Elsa might not be in any danger right now.

Anna just kept hoping that Elsa would live through this. she needed to. Anna had lost her once. She wasn't going to lose her for good.

* * *

Not long later the trio arrived at the troll haven. Elsa was now burning up unimaginably, her clothes soaked with sweat and she was shaking like mad. She was running out of time! Kristoff quickly gathered the young Queen in his arms and took off Anna in tow.

"Grand Pabbie!" he cried "please help! Its Elsa!" he ran to the center of the haven where the rocks immediately sprung to life revealing the trolls. naturally they took quick notice of Kristoffs predicament, and they quickly gathered around him as he laid Elsa on the ground.

Grand Pabbie rolled up to Elsa, before inspecting her closely "there is strange magic here…" he mumbled "you were lucky it wasn't her heart"

Anna shook her head. She knew all this. They went through it before. "We know Pabbie!" she cried, her voice breaking "can you help her or not?" She asked. She didn't mean to sound so cross, especially with the troll that had helped them so much before in the past. But with Elsa's life hanging in the balance there really wasn't enough time to start

Pbbie nodded of course he could help her. It was what he did after all. He held Elsa' head a moment. He pulled the memories that Elsa had "I recommend we remove all memories of… this magic from her. Even memories of the man responsible."

There was a clear picture of Ranger, when he was first revealed his powers. When Pabbie waved his hand, Ranger was gone and only a fire remained. One by one, Elsa's memories of Ranger were replaced by memories of a natural fire. Even one in a cave, that showed Elsa and Ranger was altered, showing only Elsa. Everything they had done. Pabbie gathered the memories and returned them to Elsa, who immediately stilled, her sweat breaking and her body temperature returning to normal. A small smile made its way onto her face, like all her worries were suddenly gone.

Pabbie grimaced, dismayed by what he had to do. He had literally deleted every memories of a man that Elsa had. It was the only way to save her life. "She will be ok," he told Anna and Kristoff.

Anna stared at Elsa "but… she won't remember Ranger…" she whispered, her hand covering her mouth. Elsa had loved him. Now she wouldn't be able to remember anything about him. All those days she had seen them smiling and laughing together. It was utterly worthless now. Elsa would return to being the queen she was before Ranger

"It is for the best Anna." Pabbie said, but even he was dismayed. "If I hadn't, Elsa might have been lost forever."

There was truth in his words of course, but the price for Elsa's life. It wasn't worth her death of course, but still… she had unknowingly sacrificed all her memories of Ranger. She had to sacrifice her love for her life.

She bent down and ran a hand over Elsa's forehead "oh… Elsa…" she whispered. What was she going to do now? Ranger was her friend, Elsa's friend. Could they really just go off and forget him because Elsa was now forced to? What justice would that do for his memory? Ranger had been abused, for gotten by his own family, ignored by those around him. Elsa was his family now; or at least had been before his death. Now he was truly forgotten by her.

She would make sure at least that Elsa knew about Ranger (though she would not tell her about her feelings for him). she would not allow Rangers memory to die with him. she owed him that much for saving her sisters life that day.

Kristoff picked up the young woman in his arms and brought her back to the sled. Anna looked at Pabbie, a look of sadness and disappointment in her eyes. She couldn't say 'thank you'. How could she explain this to her? without another word, she followed Kristoff, back to the sled.

* * *

Anna looked at Elsa, who was lying in her bed, a small smile on her face. Anna however was anything but happy. She couldn't forgive herself for allowing Elsa to go after Ranger that night. If she hadn't, then maybe Ranger would still be alive, and Elsa wouldn't have forgotten about him. Then again, maybe there would have been some sort of eternal summer instead, which would have been just as bad as the eternal winter that Elsa set off.

That of course didn't mean that Anna wasn't disappointed. She had wanted Elsa to find love with someone someday, just like she had with Kristoff. She had found it much sooner than Anna would have expected. She had watched them over the weeks they had been together, stealing glances, laughing when no one was looking, finding time to be alone (Anna had never seen Elsa so excited to be alone with someone). She never would have expected Elsa to be so happy in such a short amount of time. There were times were Anna had wanted to hang out with her, but she was spending her time with Ranger. Anna had been upset at first, but seeing Elsa so content with another person other than herself made Anna's heart swell.

But none of that mattered anymore. Elsa was blissfully unaware of any of it anymore. It just wasn't fair. Anna had lost all memories of the magic that Elsa had until after the events of the great thaw (she still didn't remember, but Elsa had told her all about it), the problem that Elsa had was that Ranger had created events that were irreconcilable without erasing any record of him doing it such as the murders of Elias and the others. All Elsa and Anna did was play, which could be easily explained as being in the snow.

Anna's face fell into her hands. This was a complete mess.

Elsa shifted in her sleep, mumbling about chocolate. She looked so peaceful. A moment later, her eyes fluttered open, and she let out a peaceful yawn, sitting up in bed, stretching her muscles, before noticing Anna. "Good morning Anna." she said a wide smile on her face.

Could she really be so oblivious as to what happened? It was like the past few hours didn't happen for her. Which considering Pabbie altered her memories. Anna gave Elsa a small smile "good morning Elsa." she said hoping that Elsa didn't notice the waver in her voice.

Thankfully, Elsa didn't instead; she threw the covers off of her bed "I think I need a bath." Elsa said, before making her way her way to the bathroom..

* * *

Elsa walked into the bathroom, stripping herself of her cloths. As she did, she noticed something odd. Her breasts were swollen slightly. She tilted her head, what was that about? She had never noticed that before. She never cared about her body before (beyond trying to keep it in shape), but she would have remembered her breast size suddenly jumping up a size or two. However she shrugged it off and decided to just get her bath ready.

She didn't have much time, since she knew that she had several meetings today, but she really wanted to enjoy herself. She had been having so much stress lately having to deal with the repercussions of the fire that had mysteriously broken out during the winter ball just before her 22nd birthday.

Despite that she felt very good this morning, like everything was going to be all right. She stepped into the water and let out a content sigh. The warmth of the water felt so good. It was just what she needed this morning.

Her stomach rumbled slightly, making her blush. She hadn't been eating much these past few days since the stress was getting to her. To her surprise though she wasn't hungry for her usual meal of strawberries and oatmeal. She was crazing chocolate. And lots of it.

After her bath she was going to go down to the kitchen and politely ask for a chocolate cake.

* * *

**Well and there you have it folks. Elsa is completely clueless about everything that had happened between her and Ranger. But there is no way to truly forget the past. I'm very sorry to upset you like this, but it is for the best, I hope. Just don't expect everything to be so happy though.**


	32. Happy

**Lets get things to be a little happier shall we?**

* * *

Elsa after dressing in a blue shirt and white pants, which was odd considering her usual stubbornness when it came to royal attire made her way down to the royal kitchen, intent on getting her chocolate cake for whatever meal she felt like having. For once she just felt like being casual and just having an all around comfortable day. Maybe that was just because she felt better after the past stressful days that she had been having. The incident with the fire during her ball, and the attack from the bandits which resulted in her getting separated from Anna and Kristoff (and much to her embarrassment did things that she would never admit to Anna, but she supposed that it was just a result of her being stressed) with a bounce in her step and a smile on her face, she entered the kitchen and was immediately assaulted with the sweet aroma of chocolate. It seemed to her that the chefs were getting ready for dessert, which sure was a while away, since they hadn't had dinner yet, but considering that she and Anna greatly enjoyed the taste of chocolate more than life itself, she really wasn't surprised that they were taking their time to make a chocolate cake for her. Besides that's what she was here for wasn't it? That craving still hadn't vanished and she doubted that it would until she sank her teeth into her large chocolate cake that she wasn't going to share with Anna no matter how much she asked.

Needles to say, the chefs were surprised to see Elsa enter the room, doing so without Anna. Then again most of the time Anna was the one who wanted to raid the kitchen because she was the one who was known for doing it. Elsa just did it because she couldn't pass up free chocolate. What? Just because she was a queen didn't mean she had to be Queenly all the time. She didn't do it all of the time, but when chocolate was involved, there was no room for argument. Not that anyone really could argue with her since she was the queen.

Elsa breathed in heavily through her nose, following the smell to what looked like a freshly baked milk chocolate cake, with lots of chocolate chips and covered in fudge icing. She happily strolled up to it and without even asking for a fork and knife, or even a plate, dug her hands into it, taking a large piece of the cake and stuffed it in her mouth, greedily eating it. She moaned, relishing the taste of chocolate. God, how was it even possible that chocolate cake was this good? Ignoring fact that she was eating even worse than Anna at this point, (as well as the people that were watching her with wide disbelieving eyes.) She continued to grab the cake with her hands shoving in as much as she could, moaning loudly with each bite that she took. She didn't stop until there was nothing left of the cake but little tiny crumbs and bits of chocolate. With a content sigh, Elsa lifted her hands and proceeded to lick the excess chocolate off of her hands, then grabbed a napkin and wiped her face clear of any remaining smudges of chocolate, before she turned and walked out of the room with a large smile on her face.

Nobody moved. Nobody breathed. They just kept looking at the remains of the cake and the door. Of all the things that they had expected to happen today, never would the chefs had thought that they would be treated to the sight of Queen Elsa of Arendelle, wearing cloths so casually, stroll into the room, without her just as chocolate crazy loving sister and proceed to, without any thought or consideration for getting the proper utensils (or a plate, for that matter) the way a normal person would, and proceed to eat an entire chocolate fudge cake (which they had prepared especially for the Queen and her sister) like a starving woman discovering the taste of chocolate for the first time in her life. If they hadn't seen it for themselves with their own eyes, they never would have believed it.

"What did we just see?"

* * *

Elsa with a very happy smile, Elsa made her way back to her room almost bouncing with joy. It was like she didn't even resister the fact that she had eaten an entire cake in front of her kitchen staff. She was just happy to actually have a cake. Her cravings had vanished and she felt very full; she probably wouldn't even go and eat dinner because what was even the point? It was going to be next to nothing compared to that delicious cake that she had just eaten. She patted her stomach, before entering the room. She didn't feel like going back to her study and doing that boring paperwork tonight. She just wanted to rest and deal with it in the morning. She was feeling to happy and doing the work would just ruin it for her.

In fact she was so happy that all she wanted to do tomorrow was take a day off. She could get Kai to do everything for her. Yeah it wasn't exactly proper for her to do so, but she was feeling like she was flying right now. So why not take advantage of it before she had to go back to all those painful hardworking hours. She could use a day off. So tomorrow she was going to take it.

She sat down on her bed, crawling up to her pillows and proceeded to let her head fall on the pillows. Oh god, how could she never have realized that her pillows were this comfortable? Her head lolled to the side and in a few short moments, she just fell asleep.

* * *

The next morning Elsa awoke to the sound of the birds singing outside her window. The sunlight was streaming through her curtains; not enough to arouse her from sleep, but enough for her to feel the warmth. Elsa opened her eyes, feeling for the first time in the past few days, quite happy. Sure she would have to tell Kai that she was intending to just take the day off, but that didn't mean that she couldn't bask in the glory of the moment that she was currently in. With a content smile, Elsa slipped out of her covers and gave a light stretch, feeling the satisfying pop in her limbs. She glanced towards the window. Given the stream of light that was currently coming through, she surmised that it was well past sunrise. Anna must be up about now, or so Elsa was hoping. Anna did like to sleep in late. Elsa quickly exited the room and made her way to Anna's room. Without even knocking on the door (Anna always left the door unlocked, in case Elsa was going to come in, not that it didn't happen often. Elsa went on working most days, but today that was going to change.) Elsa entered the room, where Anna was curled under her covers, her hair a flyaway mess, snoring lightly, completely oblivious to the fact that her sister was watching her sleep.

Elsa gave a sly smile, walking slowly to the bed, before jumping on top of it, yelling "Surprise!" at the top of her lungs. She landed on top of Anna, her elbow slamming straight into her stomach. Predictably Anna woke up with a strangled cry, jumping as she felt a sharp pin on her stomach and a person landing on top of her. "No, I wasn't riding a unicorn!" she groaned, remnants of her dream still in her mind a moment later she blinked registering the fact that her sister was currently lying on top of her, giving her a very large grin her hands holding up her chin while her eyes sparkled with mischief. "Morning Anna!" she said happily. Anna blinked, registering two things. One. Elsa was currently in her room, lying on her bed with a large smile on her face. Two. Elsa was currently in her room with a large smile on her face.

Did she mention Elsa was in her room with a large smile on her face?

"Elsa?" she groaned her voice coming out both very sleepy and slightly winded due to the fact that Elsa had hit her in the stomach (sure it was an accident, but it still hurt)

Anna couldn't believe that Elsa of all people would come and wake her up in the morning. Usually Elsa would already be awake and busy in her study; it was a wonder nobody had tried to get Elsa up early in order for her to continue her work. But then again, nobody dared to go anyone near her, considering the fact that they were scared of her for the moment. so it was mostly like that they thought it would be best for Elsa to be left to her own devices while the council and Kai handled the work until she decided to show herself (like he had been doing the past few weeks).

Which was why it was slight more than weird t see Elsa giving her a carefree smile with a mischievous glint in her eye, a look that was mostly reserved for Ana when she felt like being childish (which was every day). She was almost afraid to even ask what Elsa was thinking. Just the other day, she was in a miserable depression, unable to cope with the death of her friend and love interest. Now she looked like she could never be any happier if she tried. If there was a time where Anna could say that she had never been more afraid in her life (or maybe just shocked because she never would have thought that she would she this day ever again), now would be the perfect time to admit it.

"That's my name!" Elsa said happily jumping off the bed with a smile. She had achieved her goal of waking Anna up, now all she had to do was get her dressed and they could go off spending the day together, doing all the things that Elsa felt like doing today.

Anna pulled off her covers and stood up, giving Elsa a confused stare. She knew that Pabbie would help Elsa by removing any memories of Ranger, therefore, any pain Elsa felt about the situation was most likely (and clearly, now that she was currently standing in front of her with a smile on her face) going to be gone. She just hadn't expected Elsa to be this happy about it, even if she didn't remember anything that had happened in the past few weeks.

To Anna any happiness that Elsa was feeling was just the saddest thing that could have happened to her. Pabbie had robbed her of everything that had happened between Elsa and Ranger, as well as anything that could have happened between them. Elsa should have been allowed to work through her grief (though to be fair, she hadn't done a good job of it), not be forced to forget it. Even worse, because she no longer had any memory of Ranger, whose to say that she wouldn't fall in love with someone else someday? True if Elsa had reverted to her original thoughts and feelings on the matter, then she probably wasn't thinking about marriage whatsoever, let alone the suitors that would come for her in the future (though after the fiasco, she wasn't sure that was going to happen anytime soon). The thing was, that could change at any time. All Anna would be able to do was watch as Elsa fell in love with someone else. Anna wasn't sure if she was going to be able to bear that, at least in regard to Elsa's utter lack of memory of Ranger. It just wasn't fair.

Anna went to her closet, deciding that if Elsa was going to be casual then she was going to be too. She quickly went to her closet. She pulled on a black shirt and green pants. She then made her way back to Elsa, who was still grinning. "Come on Anna, we've got a lot to do today and not a whole lot of time to do it!" she pulled Anna out of the room.

Anna realized that today, their roles were reversed.

* * *

Kai was sitting in a chair in the council room, his face in his hands. He was so distressed and depressed all at the same time. For the 7th day in a row, he was doing the work that the queen should be doing. He knew that he shouldn't be so depressed about the situation; Elsa was going through a rather difficult time since Ranger had died (not that he knew why it her so hard; they hadn't known each other for more than a few weeks before the fiasco). But why should she? he had powers that he could honestly say was far more dangerous than Elsa's were, at least in concept. He had been so worried when she had taken off after him when he had run (or rather flown) out of the castle to who knew where. He had seen her when he had returned she was unconscious, slightly burned and worst of all, she had a black streak in her hair, the same way that Anna had a white streak in her hair. Kai knew that Anna had gotten into some trouble with Elsa when they were children (since he was one of the remaining staff members at the time) and he was afraid that the same thing had happened to Elsa.

Before he could think any further about it the door to the council chambers slammed open and in walked the Queen herself, Anna in tow. What was surprising about her appearance though (aside from the fact that she and Anna were dressed so casually, which in itself was a shock, especially coming from the queen herself) was the absolutely glistening argue smile that was gracing the Queens face. She strolled right up to Kai, before saying "Kai, I appreciate all the work you have done for me over the past week. I know that I haven't been doing my duties due to the depression that I have been going through. I just want to tell you, that I am feeling much better now. I must ask of you… would you mind taking over my duties for today? Please, after everything that has happened, I would really enjoy a good day with my sister. So it would make me happy to be with her today."

Kai (along with the rest of the council for that matter) was to shock for words. Just yesterday the Queen was a angry dragon lady, not willing to listen to anyone. Today she was as happy as a child would be. Just what had happened in the past 24 hours to change her so suddenly? He nodded dumbly, unable to come up with any words or even bother arguing with Elsa (not that he could anyway, since she was the Queen)

Before Kai could even think of anything else, Elsa turned heal and strode out of the room, taking Anna with her.

* * *

Anna couldn't believe her luck. Elsa was happy (though she really wasn't happy about the circumstances that led to her being happy) and they were spending the day together.

That being said, it would be much better if Anna wasn't currently going through 'that time of month'. Her stomach had been cramping ever since Elsa had hit her. at first Anna had thought that had been the reason for her pain, but after a few moments of letting the pain subside, she found out that it was a little more than just a sock in the stomach. Of course Anna never let that stop her; a period was nothing compared to her massive optimism. It was just that she hated the pain. That was the one thing that she was never going to get over. She hated it as much as the next person did, she supposed.

That being said there was one thing about today that was weird. Elsa… though Anna never made a habit of keeping track of her menstrual cycle, something was weird. Her period had been roughly five weeks ago, on a nearly identical cycle to Anna's. So if Anna was currently suffering from her own dreaded time of month, then why wasn't Elsa suffering the same issue?

Well, maybe she shouldn't worry about it. Elsa could just be late. It was only Anna's first day after all. Perhaps in a few hours Elsa would be in the same situation, not that Anna wanted to wish that upon Elsa (not that she had a choice in the matter). She wanted to have a good time with Elsa right now.

Elsa looked back at Anna; giving her a very wide, happy grin "So Anna?" she asked, "Where do you feel like going today?"

Anna bit her lip. Truth be told, she didn't know where she wanted to go. It wasn't like she had been expecting Elsa to want to even go out today. She could take Elsa to all the places that they normally would, she supposed. But she did need to talk to Elsa about Ranger. She did make herself a promise. She wouldn't allow Elsa to forget the man that had touched her heart.

She gave Elsa a smile. She knew exactly where they were going to go. "How about we head to the docks? Where we had lunch the last time we went out?"

Elsa gave her sister a smile "That sounds like a really good idea Anna." she agreed. Together, the two went to the restaurant by the docks.

* * *

**Anna has some explaining to do huh? Plus she has a few things to figure out herself… Stay tuned next time.**


	33. Day Off

**Another chapter! I'm glad all of you like that Elsa is a little more bubbly than usual. theres a little more of that in this chapter. Also if I could have a moment of everyones time to tell anyone who says update soon that you don't need to tell me that. My schedule is fairly frequent with chapters coming out every 1-3 days. Telling me to update soon is irrelevant because I am able to update fairly quickly. Don't get me wrong I am glad you all care about the story. I just don't want you to worry because if there was a reason that I wouldn't update quickly, I would tell you. I also intend to finish this story so don't worry about me leaving long cliff hangers.**

**Without further ado, read on!**

* * *

Elsa and Anna quickly walked (that is to say Elsa was practically jumping with joy ready to sink her teeth into another chocolate cake, because what else did she need for breakfast? Anna on the other hand was walking briskly, trying to keep up with her recently invigorated older sister.) It was kind of difficult due to her cramping stomach, but she was able to work through it. It wasn't like a period was so difficult for her, despite the fact on its worst moments; she had a really bad craving for chocolate, which kind of helped out on her mood. Which was still between shocked and confused at the moment. She had never seen Elsa so happy before, even after the events of the great thaw, Elsa was still kind of reserved, but only in the introverted kind of way, not the 'get away or I will freeze you' kind of way. She would say that Pabbie rewiring her memory was the cause of it, but even before Ranger had shown up, Elsa never got this happy, and Anna would never have expected her too. She was even happier than when she and ranger got along with each other! For crying out loud Elsa never went into Anna's room requesting to spend the day with her. it was always the other way around. So Ana couldn't help but wonder why Elsa was so gosh darn happy…

But… Wasn't that what Anna had always wanted for her sister? To be happy? Elsa was always working and while Anna obviously admired that, rarely ever got to see her sister being as playful and carefree as she was. So could she really take that away from her? Granted, Elsa might suddenly revert to her usual 'Queenly' demeanor after today, or even by sundown, so Anna did want to enjoy this while she could. The only problem? Anna needed (well really she just wanted to… she wasn't sure if Elsa would consider it important anymore, or even remember it after Anna told her; not likely considering that Anna didn't remember the events of that night, despite Elsa telling her about it) to tell Elsa about Ranger and he feelings for him.

Would Elsa believe her? Chances were probably not, considering that before he showed up, Elsa would shoot down any potential suitors for her long before they would even get to Arendelle. The reason? Well it was partially because Elsa was still young, both physically and in her duties as queen. She wanted to take her time making sure she was readily prepared before having to get married. Then of course there was the incident with Hans. While Anna knew that not everyone was like him, there just might be one of those people out there who could be just as smooth and suave until the moment the marriage was certified. That was one of Elsa's biggest fears. Even though both of them knew that Elsa was the wiser of the two and definitely not as hasty as Anna was, even she could get tricked by someone. She hadn't seen Hans malicious nature and hadn't even suspected of it, until the very end where she was almost murdered by him. As a matter fact, she hadn't seen it at all! She had trusted him to take care of Anna, even though it was in a moment of stress and she was struggling to get away from the damage that she had caused with her powers. She hadn't even noticed the sword that he had intended to kill her with (then again she was much to traumatized by Anna's apparent death to care).

But Ranger… he had saved her. He was willing to sacrifice his own life for her own. She had seen the look on his face just before he jumped out of that sled into the rushing river below. It was a mixture of shock horror and fear. Anna had seen that look on Elsa the night of the great freeze. it was as if they were staring at death right in the face. Did Elsa have that look on her face when she saw Ranger just before he died? Did he, when he died? Either way, she had seen everything she needed to ever know about Ranger. How could she just allow him to truly die with Elsa's memory? He deserved much more than what he got. Anna had seen the scars… she had seen a fragment of his past. His whole life before Elsa had been nothing but pain, both according to that memory and Elsa's words about the situation. Why shouldn't she know about him? It would be most unfair and unjust to not tell Elsa about what could possibly be the best thing that could have ever happened to her (at least in the time since after the great thaw.

But Anna would have to wait to tell her anything. Mainly because Elsa was still dragging her around without much of a care in the world, and because Anna was much to hungry, (since she hadn't had any breakfast yet today; for that she could be a little grateful the Elsa had woken her up this morning) to bother arguing with her older sister. Not that she would want Elsa to hit her in the stomach everyday. That would just be painful (which it was) and unnecessary. She could just wave chocolate under her nose instead. That was a definite way to wake either sister up from their drowsy sleep. But because Elsa had a strict no chocolate before breakfast rule (and because she was more than likely to taunt Anna by eating the chocolate before Anna could get it; seriously, neither sister could give up chocolate to the other unless there were very extreme circumstances) that would probably never happen. But considering that the two had almost unlimited access to chocolate, they never really had to end up worrying about that sort of thing, unless they miraculously ended up running out of chocolate, which wasn't likely to happen.

* * *

Needless to say, everyone at the docks were pretty surprised to once again see the princess and the Queen walking around the docks to the nearby seafood restaurant that they had gone to the last time they had been here. Mainly because the Queen and the princess were hardly ever in town during most days. why would they be? They had much better chefs at the palace didn't they? But of course they didn't Question the queen because she was the queen. Though they did tremble slightly when she entered the restaurant with a crazed look on her face and practically and without any shame or remorse whatsoever, all but screamed "Chef! Your finest plate and a chocolate cake please!"

Anna for one was taken aback by Elsa's loud outburst. Elsa, the most regal queen that she had ever known (well really the only Queen that she had ever known, not counting her mother), was acting like she was! Just what did the trolls do to her? Elsa would never act like this. First she comes bouncing into her room and literally hopped onto the bed with her in it! she knew that Ranger was the source of some of the stress that had been plaguing her sister, but not all of it! What about her meetings, her long hours of work? Or the people that she would have to insufferably sit through? Did they just utterly mean nothing to Elsa now? Anna was all in for a playful day with Elsa, but now Elsa was starting to act like an Anna clone! Let me tell you, that is just scary. Anna knew that she was a reckless human being (for which Elsa had scolded her many times) but the idea of Elsa being the same was just freaky! No she would really enjoy Elsa being her usual stoic introverted self because if she continued acting like this, Anna was going to have an aneurysm. She had never been so confused in all of her life! She was going to give the trolls a piece of her mind the net time she got the chance.

Elsa (who now let go of Anna's arm) and Anna walked to a table and sat down, eagerly awaiting their orders (since Elsa had all but screamed it when they first got in to the restaurant.)

Elsa for one was shaking like mad, like she was cold, which was odd considering that she was the snow Queen. Anna being the concerned sister that she was, quickly asked "Elsa… are you ok?"

Elsa nodded "I'm fine, I just feel so… HAPPY!" she screamed waving her hands in the air like she just didn't care. Anna jumped not at all expecting that from Elsa. Yeah she was definitely going to give the trolls a lecture next time she saw them. This was just to weird even for her!

Anna was afraid to ask, but she did anyway. "Why?"

Elsa gave her a large grin, "I just woke up feeling like that, and well first I went to take a bath then noticed my breasts were a little…." Anna tuned out for a moment, unable to register what she was hearing. Elsa was talking about her breasts. ELSA WAS TALKING ABOUT HER BREASTS! Why in the world would she be talking about her breasts? In public? Granted they were in their own private dining room, so there wasn't anyway for people to hear them, but still. Next thing you know, she was going to give Anna the talk (which she didn't need, courtesy of Gerda when she was twelve)

The question remained and Anna was unable to stop herself from screaming, "Who are you and what have you done to my sister!"

Elsa flinched stopping in midsentence, somewhat frightened by Anna's sudden outburst. Sure Anna hadn't expected herself to just scream like that, but neither had she expected her sister to start talking about her body in ways that Anna would have expected from a lecture about puberty!

The most shocking thing about this? Elsa's bottom lip started quivering and her eyes began tearing up, before suddenly bursting into tears her face falling into her hands and wailing like a baby. Anna stared at Elsa, her mouth dropping open, unsure of what to do. All she did was ask a simple question, why would Elsa suddenly start crying like someone had told her that no chocolate existed in the world? awkwardly, Anna stood up and went over to her sister giving her a hug. Elsa responded by wrapping her arms around Anna and burying her face in her shoulder "I'm sorry Anna!" she mumbled, her voice wavering because of the tears "I just want to talk to you about what's been going on in the past few days!"

Anna just patted her sisters head "its ok-" she ban but at that moment Elsa looked up at her face breaking out into a wide grin "REALLY!" she cried. Anna backed away and returned to her seat. This was getting to freaky even for her…

However at that moment, a waiter walked in carrying two plates of steak for two and quite possibly the most appetizing chocolate cake (outside of the castle of course) that Anna had ever seen. Even her mouth was watering, though that seemed to be nothing compared to the look on Elsa's face. She almost looked like she was having a heart attack.

The plates of steak were placed in front of the queen and princess while the cake was put between them, intended for after the steak. Anna of course, grabbed her utensils and began cutting the steak and eating it rapidly since she really wanted that chocolate cake, after managing to finish half the steak in about ten seconds, she glanced up at Elsa intending to ask how her steak was, but when she saw what her sister was actually doing, Anna swallowed her food in shock and dropped her utensils.

Elsa was using her bare hands to eat the chocolate cake. Not just eating, but shoving it down her throat like a starving woman. Anna wouldn't, just wouldn't believe what she was seeing. Elsa? Eating like that? Elsa never ate like that; she was always so regal, so poise taking in small bites and wiping her mouth after everything she swallowed. Sometimes she ate like a squirrel or something like that. But eating like a hippopotamus? Elsa would have died long before even thinking to eat like that. What the heck was going on with her sister?

Elsa just finished her piece (if you could even call taking a humongous bite out of a cake a piece) of cake and proceeded to (Anna was having a heart attack at this point) lick her hands and then wipe her face with the napkin, completely ignoring Anna. Instead she just leaned back in her chair for a moment, letting out a small content sigh. She then sat back up, grabbed her utensils and began eating the steak like Elsa normally would. As if the past few seconds hadn't even occurred to her.

"Elsa… what the heck did you just do?" Anna asked. Elsa looked up at Anna "I was just craving that cake… I can't help it, I've been having cravings this morning." She said honestly. That was true, but Elsa really hadn't thought about it much. She had always loved chocolate, so craving it like she was wasn't that strange was it? Anna and her normally raided the kitchen every other week. At those times, there was no escaping the chocolate crazed monarchs of Arendelle. It was pretty much 'give us the chocolate or die'. Yep even if they weren't the monarchs of an entire kingdom, they were still that scary.

Anna shook her head. There was something going on with Elsa. She didn't know what it was, but it was definitely enough to worry her. Anna looked back at her plate, returning to eating her steak. However, this time she kept out an eye for her sister (she didn't want Elsa eating all of the cake; she would not be cheated out of her own slice of the chocolate!).

After the two of them finished their own meal, they both looked at the dessert. Anna anticipating that Elsa would definitely try and get the cake quickly used the cake cutter and snagged a couple slices of it, because (none to her surprise) Elsa returned to snagging the cake with her bare hands, without any point considering using her utensils. Anna knew that Elsa was big on chocolate like she was, but never to this extent before.

However when Elsa finished her slice of cake, Anna noticed that Elsa didn't look at all satisfied. No in fact, she looked very angry. There was a scowl on her face that was practically screaming murder and as if that wasn't enough, ice was creeping onto the walls and even under and over the table. Anna shivered, feeling the full effects of the temperature drop.

Elsa stared down at the empty plate, shaking angrily, before she slammed her fists on the table, causing the whole room to shake from the tremendous force. Anna even jumped scared by her sister's sudden outburst.

"Bring me more chocolate!" Elsa shouted her voice sounding very loud and very scary, not that Anna would ever admit that. But of course the waiters heard her and brought out many more chocolate cakes; if only to allow Elsa to continue eating until she felt satisfied from the sheer amount of chocolate that they were going to bring her. As if that was ever going to happen.

* * *

Elsa and Anna returned to the castle, Elsa feeling very satisfied from the amount of chocolate that she hate and Anna wondering if she was going to be able to pinch herself and wonder if she was going to wake up convinced that she had dreamed everything that had just happened after having a massive sugar rush.

Her sister ate three cakes. Three! She could never have imagined that Elsa would even allow herself to eat all that much. Granted they were small, so it wasn't like they were not all that filling, but still that was an extreme amount of cake even for Elsa herself. Elsa loved chocolate just as much as she did, but… in public? Anna was going to need therapy after witnessing Elsa do all those unlike Elsa like things that she did at lunch. Elsa had never gotten like that and it was scary. While Elsa made her way to her study, Anna made her way to the stables to find Kristoff. She needed to talk to someone about what had happened, because it was driving her nuts as it was!

Kristoff was lying on a batch of hay, Olaf and Sven by his side. They all seemed to be asleep and they were snoring in sync, which Anna would have found cute if she wasn't so upset at the moment. She grabbed a nearby bucket that was filled with water and threw it at Kristoff drenching him and the others in water (not that it would have mattered to Olaf.) Kristoff woke up with a gasp, sputtering obscenities that no one should ever hear. He looked around violently, only to stop glaring when he noticed his girlfriend staring at him with an annoyed look on her face.

"Anna! What was that for?" Kristoff yelled, standing up and shaking his head in an attempt to rid him self of the water.

"There is something wrong with Elsa!" Anna yelled at him "This morning she woke up happy! And then we went to lunch and she ate three chocolate cakes, but got happy sad and mad all at the same time! I don't know how to explain it!"

Kristoff looked at her oddly "Anna, you know that she likes chocolate." he trailed off

Anna shook her head "I know that she likes chocolate, but you didn't see the look in her eyes… the way she ate! It was like nothing that I've ever seen before in my life! She said that she was craving chocolate! I crave chocolate, but what I saw! That was insane! "

Kristoff frowned "Anna are you sure your not over reacting?" oops wrong thing to say. Anna sputtered giving him a glare before turning around and stomping off.

Kristoff just stared at her retreating back, going over what Anna had said. Swaying emotions, cravings. His eyes widened as it hit him like a ton of bricks. His mouth dropped open and his shoulders slumped.

"Somebodies got to tell her."

* * *

**Looks like Kristoff knows whats up with Elsa… I actually was going to reveal it in this chapter, but its going to happen in the next chapter, because this chapter was getting long and I figured out the best way for Elsa to find out. So wait for it.**

**Also, if I can take another moment of your time, anyone a good artist? some fan fiction authors have personalized covers for there stories, so would it be possible for one of you with artistic skills to draw one up? If your interested PM me. The first five to answer will be those I consider, and I will announce the winner after they finish their work and I have evaluated which one to use. There is no rush for the cover so take as much time as you need. Just make sure to have a Deviantart account for easy access.**


	34. Olaf's big mouth

**Another chapter! Sorry about the wait. I was finishing my other Frozen Fanfic "Kiss Me Slowly", and reassuring readers for my other fic "A Moment in the Sunset". Feel free to check them out.**

**Without further ado, read on!**

* * *

Kristoff watched Anna's retreating back, fully realizing what Anna hadn't seen about Elsa. Or at least what he was suspecting. It was just too much for him to process. Elsa was pregnant! He had seen several women who were pregnant over the course of his life (on some occasion the trolls, though he doubted that it was the same.) so he knew what he was talking about. That being said, when the heck did Elsa find the time to…

His mouth dropped open as he remembered the day they were attacked by the bandits and Elsa and Ranger were separated from them in the chaos. They had spent the entire night and most of the next morning looking for them. So if what Kristoff suspected was true, that meant while he and Sven were not getting any sleep, worrying over the fact that Elsa might have been in danger, she was actually… he blanched not wanting to think about it whatsoever. He hadn't even thought about doing it with Anna, thinking that Elsa might have done it was way too far… he covered his mouth and ran to the bucket that Anna had used coughing up some carrots. Ugh… he was so disgusted right now.

Straitening up, he tapped his chin. How was he going to explain this to Elsa and Anna? Anna wouldn't believe him (or at least think he was insane for even insinuating that Elsa would do such a thing before marriage,) while Elsa would freeze him in a block of ice. That being said, she didn't even remember Ranger! How was he supposed to tell her if she didn't remember him? That and there was also the fact that it was only a suspicion. There was a good chance that they had never done anything and that things were simply being over exaggerated by Anna (since Elsa had been acting weird lately). So he really couldn't go off and talk to Elsa about it without definite proof (which, if he was correct, would come in due time, but he knew how dangerous that would be for her.)

But with that said, he had to at least tell Anna because for one, he needed to apologize, and two, if his suspicions were true, Anna might be able to help Elsa contain it (since Anna was a woman and probably knew ore about her body and what to do with pregnancy tan he did), probably with some massive wardrobe changes.

But with that said, what were they supposed to do? Elsa was the queen for crying out loud! The reigning monarch of an entire nation of people who looked up to her for guidance and leadership! If she was indeed pregnant what would that mean for her… or even worse her child? Best-case scenario, her child would be considered a bastard, an unworthy child to the throne. As for Elsa, she would be shunned and abdicated from the throne, seen as an unworthy ruler who would gladly allow herself to be run by her own desire. Ok maybe that one was a bit dramatic, but the point was it would be a fairly scandalous and not bode very well for Elsa and perhaps Anna either. so yeah blindly charging into the idea of telling Elsa was not going to go over very well.

Still Anna might need to know. Scratch that she definitely needed to know. If not just to tell her that Elsa could potentially be pregnant, then just to tell her why Elsa was acting so out of character.

With his mind made up, he raced out the door of the stables intent on catching her and telling her his suspicions.

* * *

Anna stomped out of the stables absolutely seething with fury. Next time Kristoff said something like that she was definitely going to punch him in the face! The only reason she didn't was because she didn't want to seriously hurt him (because she had a strong jab that could definitely break someone's bones.

She huffed, intent on doing something other than being around Kristoff. She loved him, but right now she was so mad at him because he was absolutely no help whatsoever with what she was feeling. She was really concerned for Elsa. Her attitude was worrying her because she never acted like the way she was today ever before in her life. It was creepy and for once, she wished that she had her normal queenly sister back.

Speaking of Elsa, what was she doing right now?

* * *

Elsa was sitting on her bed, eating a small amount of chocolate that she saved. Even after the entire cake ordeal, she was still craving chocolate. She was having quite the glorious day. She had spent lunch with her sister and was completely and totally intent on have a full relaxing day doing whatever she felt like doing (since Anna had left to go with Kristoff) right now hat just meant lazing around in her room eating chocolate and reading a book. She never got to do thinks like this very often, so she did want to enjoy herself while she could.

As she opened her book, she noticed that her stomach was rumbling. She groaned, the feeling quite nauseous. She covered her mouth, trying desperately to contain the feeling. She had quite the lunch, so the last thing she wanted was to have to get rid of it. She swallowed, the feeling of nausea passing over her. Smiling, she fell back into her pillow and returned to reading the book.

* * *

Kristoff ran up to Anna grabbing her wrist. Said Princess stopped, turning to look at Kristoff with a glare. How dare he? He had no right to touch her like that. She pulled her hand away, before growling at him "what do you want Kristoff?" she snapped at him. She was not in the mood to talk with him, not after everything he had pulled back there.

Kristoff sighed "look Anna I'm sorry, but I think I know whats wrong with Elsa."

Anna scoffed "what, you think she's going crazy too?" she growled "I don't care what you have to say Kristoff." she began to turn away again, when Kristoff grabbed her by her shoulder and pulled her close, harshly whispering "I think Elsa is pregnant!" in her ear.

Anna stiffened, her brain jamming. Pregnant? Did Kristoff just say the word pregnant? Why in the world would he be saying that Elsa was pregnant? That was ridiculous. Elsa never… Anna's eyes widened, remembering the day Elsa and Ranger had been alone. Anna blanched images of… that entering her mind. Her sister! Her older sister might have…. With Ranger?!

"YOU THINK ELSA IS PREGNANT!" She screeched, her voice booming across Arendelle. If no one heard it, it would be very shocking.

* * *

Elsa snapped up from her book, startled by a very loud shout that sounded a lot like Anna. However it sounded very muffed because it seemed to come from outside, rather than inside. What could have caused Anna to yell so loudly? She considered putting her book down to go check it out, but decided not to. If she was with Kristoff, then he would probably be able to handle it.

* * *

Kristoff wasn't sure if standing in front of a horn could have been any worse. If his ears weren't bleeding from that, he would have thought that he was deaf in the first place. As it was, he wasn't certain how he had been able to survive any time that Anna had yelled at him in the past few months. With a sigh, he said, "yes Anna, I think she is pregnant. The symptoms are all there. She has cravings, mood swings… if she starts getting morning sickness, I wouldn't be surprised. That's the problem, if Ranger is the father…"

Anna shook her head "of course he would be the father! Do you see any other men Elsa was falling for around here?!" she snapped at him. What were they going to do? This was an absolute mess. They couldn't very well go and talk to her.

Anna couldn't believe it. Ranger slept with her sister! He took her to bed before he died! What the heck was he thinking? Scratch that, what was Elsa thinking. On second thought she really didn't want to know. Just thinking about it made her feel sick.

But that still didn't help either of them! The problem remained that because the trolls repressed any memory of Ranger, she had no idea that she even had sex with him! because she didn't remember that, how was she going to react to the news that she was pregnant! It was not going to be pretty that was for sure.

They needed to come up with a plan. Something to get Elsa to believe them without setting off to many alarms. Which was most likely going to end up being impossible given how huge the problem was!

"We can't tell her… at least not yet…" Kristoff said, "We need to make sure that Elsa herself is convinced first" there wouldn't be any other way to be able to convince her otherwise. She was that stubborn. Even if she wasn't, that would still be hard to believe. What were they supposed to say "hey Elsa, you know that incident a few weeks ago? Well there was a guy responsible for that. his name was Ranger and oh, by the way, you liked him. so much so that we think your pregnant." That was definitely going to end up going well.

Little did they realize a certain little snowman had heard their entire conversation and was currently making his way up to Elsa's bed room.

* * *

Olaf teetered up to the castle, going through the main foyer and making his way up the stairs. He was so (obliviously) confused right now. Anna and Kristoff said that Elsa was dealing with something called 'pregnant' just what was pregnant and why did Elsa have it. Was she sick or something like that? Was it something that a warm hug could fix? He was good at giving those. After all, his name was Olaf and he loved giving warm hugs. So if he could help Elsa get better, then who was better for the job?

* * *

Elsa closed her book, giving a heavy sigh as she leaned back into her pillows, feeling quite tired al of a sudden. After reading that book and having a very filling meal, she could use a nap. She had all day to get up and do something. With a grin, she closed her eyes, ready to just drift into the blissful state of sleep.

Just as she was sure she was going to fall asleep, there was a tiny knock at her door, startling her awake. She sat up abruptly her breath coming out quickly, for she hadn't been expecting that at all. Elsa placed a hand on her chest, breathing heavily. She felt her heartbeat slow down. With a sigh she said, "Come in"

The door opened, revealing Olaf, who was giving her a very goofy grin as he made his way to the edge of Elsa's bed. He hopped up on the bed giving Elsa a very goofy yet curious looking smile. Elsa looked at him, unsure exactly what it was that Olaf wanted. He rarely ever came to her room, since he usually spent more of his time with Anna, since he liked to play (at least when he wasn't in his garden). So what was his excuse for coming here now? Knowing Olaf she wasn't sure what it could be. He was like a child and as such, had an intense curiosity that was only matched by his obliviousness.

With a smile, she asked, "Is there something you need Olaf" giving the little snowman a smile. Olaf just swung his legs, his smile widening, before he opened his mouth and to Elsa's utter shock blurted out "Elsa what is pregnant?"

Elsa's eyes widened, her mouth going dry. Of all the things that she would have expected Olaf to ask, that was the last thing that would have come to mind! Olaf, while technically male, lacked anything that identified him as such (because why in the world would Elsa have given him such things; it would have been awkward and raise way to many questions that Elsa would not want to answer.) so why would she have ever expected him to ask about things like pregnancy unless he asked why a woman was having a baby. As a matter of fact, she was certain that none of the castle staff was pregnant, so where was Olaf coming from with this?

Elsa went red, unable to stop her self from blushing "Olaf! why in the world would you ask me that?" her voice came out quite shocked and it wavered. She would have expected something like this from Anna if she were ready to have children, not from Olaf who hadn't even seen a pregnant woman before in his very short life!

Olaf just kicked his legs "well, Kristoff Sven and I were sleeping and then Anna woke us up with a bucket of water (Elsa let out a laugh, Anna wasn't exactly known for her subtlety) and she began talking about your day in the town earlier.

Elsa shook her head. That was a private moment between her and Anna; just a day with two sisters having fun with each other after several stressful days. Anna wasn't one to brag so something else must have made her so anxious to tell Kristoff and the others about it. Just what exactly would have happened in order for her to go that far? All they did was go out to lunch. They had a good meal. What was so strange about that?

"and then they said something about you being pregnant. Are you sick? Can I give you a warm hug to help?"

Elsa stopped breathing. Her brain jammed at the word pregnant. More specifically that Anna said that she, Elsa, the Queen of Arendelle herself was pregnant. At one point did Anna think she was pregnant? She never even met a man that she liked before. She would never even consider having a casual relationship just like that? What game was Anna playing with her at the moment?

Unable to stop herself Elsa let out a "WHAT?!" that sounded out through the entire kingdom.

* * *

Anna and Kristoff stiffened, hearing the distant sound of Elsa's screaming in the distance. Just what was going on? It sounded like Elsa was scared or something like that. Elsa never sounded so scared before in her life (at least not since the events of the coronation) so what was her excuse now?

Feeling concern rise in her body, Anna turned around and raced towards the castle. She needed to see if her sister was all right.

Kristoff ran beside her. He might as well, since they still needed to come up with a plan.

* * *

Olaf stared at Elsa, who had gone very pale and was shaking like mad, her legs pressed against her chest, rocking herself in a soothing motion. Or at least it would have been, if Olaf hadn't successfully managed to actually do the impossible. He had manged to break the Queen of Arendelle

She wasn't pregnant. She couldn't be pregnant. The only time she even had a moment of pleasure was when she was hiding in the cave and she… well she was alone that was the important thing. It wasn't like that was a common habit though; she had only ever done it once! So how in the world could she even be pregnant?

Anna was going to have a lot of explaining to do; that is if Elsa managed to fix her self from the shock.

Olaf honestly had absolutely no idea what he had done. He was only trying to help. How was that so wrong. Elsa could have just answered yes or no and he still would have given her a warm hug just to make her feel better. Instead she screamed at him and was now just staring off into the distance. Well he could still giver her a warm hug, couldn't he? He stood up on the bed walking over to the queen and wrapped his twig arms around her. Elsa didn't even budge. She just continued to sit there, completely ignoring the little snowman. It was like she was in a comatose state.

* * *

Anna burst into the room, followed quickly by Kristoff. she quickly noticed two things, one Olaf was in the room, giving Elsa a warm hug. The second thing she noticed that Elsa was curled into a ball on her bed, completely ignoring everything around her, even the sound of Anna bursting into the room (which normally would have had Elsa jumping in shock. Instead she was completely ignoring it). Now that was very odd. What could have happened in the past few minutes that could have possibly made Elsa go off and act like this? She stared at Olaf, who let go of Elsa and hopped off the bed, before going to Anna "I just wanted to ask her a Question." he said sadly before he walked out of the room.

Kristoff, seeing that this was more of a sister moment (and because he was scared about what could follow) quickly walked out of the room.

Anna quickly walked over to her sister's side and sat next to her. She placed a hand on Elsa's shoulder, gently shaking her sister. "Elsa… is everything alright? What happened?

That seemed to get a reaction from the comatose Queen. She turned to look at Anna, a scared look on her face. "Anna. Tell me. Why in the world would you say to anyone that you think I'm pregnant!" she all but screamed.

Anna's eyes widened. What was she going to do?

* * *

**Well. Whats Anna going to do now? She has to tell her sometime right?**

**Also I reposted my Union one shot. feel free to check that out too.**


	35. Impossible

**Glad you all enjoyed Olaf ruining the moment for everyone. yeah Elsa is not pleased by the idea of pregnancy. But she does not yet know she is pregnant. She is just in shock at the idea of it. She won't find out until later. Remember, everything that has happened with her and Ranger, she doesn't know. **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Anna felt her mouth go dry. She knew that there was no real way to hide the truth from Elsa, either by distracting her or avoiding the question. She would always get her way using her queenly and sisterly authority. That and if she was pregnant, then she was going to find out the hard way anyway. Still this was not the way that Anna wanted to have this conversation with Elsa. she needed more proof, not to convince her self, but to convince Elsa. Which would mean waiting for Elsa to show more symptoms, which would mean that it would be harder to hide from anyone, meaning that they were going to be in even more trouble, which meant… Dear god, Elsa why did you have to go and do what you did?! Do you have any idea what type of situation you've just put yourself in?! No? You're a queen woman! You should know better!

Yeah basically Elsa was in a huge amount of trouble and Anna wasn't sure how they were going to be able to fix it. That is if she was right. God all of this was making Anna's brain hurt. She heaved a very big sigh placing her face in her hand. This was going to be so difficult. Elsa was most likely never under any circumstances going to believe her. Why would she? It was like believing Anna single handedly ate every piece of chocolate in the castle in one day without allowing Elsa to partake in it (well she could, she jut never would do that to Elsa). Completely impossible.

How in the world would she be able to explain this to Elsa… best case scenario, Elsa would just lock her self in her room again, which was something that Anna seriously did not want to happen again. She had lost Elsa once. She did not want to do it again. Besides in the long run Anna always did want a niece or nephew. It was just that no one was expecting it to happen like this. In fact it really shouldn't happen like this! Anna hadn't even brought up kids to Kristoff… heck they hadn't even thought about marriage! So what was Elsa's excuse? On second thought, she didn't want to know. It was way too much information just to know that she was pregnant. Not that Elsa could even give her any information on the matter anyway. The trolls had removed any memory of the event when they altered Elsa's memory of Ranger.

So either way, there was really no way to truly know what had happened.

It didn't matter. As long as Elsa was safe, Anna could live with the fact that Elsa had somehow (well, she knew how…) managed to get herself pregnant. Now Anna just had to find a way to tell Elsa that she had a (sort of) boyfriend. All while trying to convince Elsa that she wasn't joking.

Anna gulped, taking a moment to compose her self. She needed to be poise, regal and concise. You know the exact opposite of everything she was? Anna just decided that there really was no better way to explain it to Elsa. She took another breath and said "Elsa… I think your pregnant… because… you…. HAD SEX WITH A MAN NAMED RANGER." She shouted that last one all in one breath. Or at least that's what she thought she said. Instead what came out was a blur of words that Elsa could not decipher. Good thing too, because if Anna had managed to say it all aloud, then Elsa was certain to not like it. Well she wouldn't have liked it anyway, but being quiet was much better than saying something like that aloud. For once Anna was happy that her usual bubbliness was able to stop her in her speech. Anna took another breath.

"Elsa.. You really wouldn't believe me if I told you…" she said, looking down at her sisters bed sheets. This was turning out much harder than she wanted it to be. She just had to come out in say it. She needed to tell her sister the truth. Who better than her? It really shouldn't be so difficult to do. Too bad it really was the difficult to do.

Anna groaned once again taking another look at her sister. More specifically her stomach. Where her child could potentially be…

She gritted her teeth looked at Elsa and quickly and quietly said "Elsa… I think… I think that you're pregnant because of an… old friend… who died recently…

Elsa tilted her head, looking at Anna like she was insane. Died? No one died recently… for crying out loud the worst that had happened in the past few days was the candles at the party… which had affected her birthday… and Christmas… and New years Eve… which was today… she suddenly realized something. How in the world were any of those events suddenly related… to what Anna was saying? It didn't make any sense. She knew that Anna could tell tale tales, but her being pregnant was more ridiculous than anything that Anna could possibly come up with. This was insane. Besides, other than Anna Kristoff Olaf Sven Kai and Gerda, Elsa didn't have any one close to her. Her parents were dead, and most of the castle staff were more like acquaintances at best. So unless Anna or anyone close to Elsa had died (unlikely considering she had seen them all in the past few days), who in the world could Anna be talking about. There was nobody else… was there? This didn't even answer the question. How did this relate to Anna coming to the conclusion that she… Elsa… her own sister was pregnant? By someone who couldn't possibly, under any circumstances… get her pregnant, let alone get close to her. Elsa would never even consider the possibility. She was still young and needed time to acclimate properly to being queen. Sure she had about six months of doing the deed, but that was not even close to the amount of time she was willing to put in before considering marriage. In fact she would rather Kristoff and Anna get married long before she considered the idea her self! Maybe Olaf had taken it more seriously than Elsa would have realized, but even so, this was way to ridiculous to be true!

She frowned, giving Anna a disbelieving look. "Anna, I am not amused at all by your attempt at a joke. I am not pregnant. That's just ridiculous! I've never even…" she stopped, her cheeks going a light pink. She was still a virgin! She didn't want to really discuss such things with her sister, since it really wasn't her business to begin with.

Anna shook her head. She knew that Elsa wasn't going to believe her. Heck, Anna her self wouldn't have believed it! But the problem remained. "Elsa, I know! I know it's hard to believe, but just listen! About three month ago we went to the docks… don't you remember?

Of course Elsa remembered… she had practically went out of her mind planning that day with her sister! They had left the castle… gone to the docks… where they had stayed until every sailor had been off of the boat. No one that was particularly interesting to Elsa had gotten off of the boat… had they? No… Elsa definitely would have been able to remember that! She growled, leaping off of the bed. She took several steps away, before turning back to Anna, gritting her teeth in pure an utter rage, her normally pale face a dark shade of red. If Anna could have admitted that there was any tie where Elsa had ever looked her scariest, now could definitely be the best time to say it "No! Anna… this is the sickest thing you've ever pulled on me! Who? Pray tell! Could I have possibly had a relationship! That I can't even remember having! With! That would result in me getting, which couldn't be possible by the way! PREGNANT!" Elsa was so angry! There was no need for this, yet Anna was taking this way to far! Anna was not in charge of her love life. She did not need this to happen whatsoever! She just needed to get on with her life and deal with the mess that had been created. Elsa might marry eventually, but that was not going to happen for quite a long time.

Anna bit her lip "his name was Ranger… he was a man from southern Europe. I don't know where to be exact but… you were close…" she gave a small hiccup, trying to keep her tears at bay. Thinking of Rangers death still hurt Anna, which made it all the worse since Elsa couldn't even remember him!

Elsa looked at her sister. Ice was appearing at her feet, some spikes even popping out from the floor. Who in the world was this Ranger person? And how in the world could she have gotten so close to him… enough to allow him to touch her? To give her a baby? In only three months? She wasn't even allowing Anna to do such a thing after the same amount of time. Anna had to be making all of this up! Her face turned a shade of purple. She just couldn't believe it.

'Anna how could I have ever gotten close to someone? I don't even like anyone."

Anna could feel her own emotions flare up. Elsa was making this extremely difficult for her to be able to do any of this calmly. Elsa was stubborn but this was just getting to difficult for Anna.

"We were attacked by bandits one day. We were on Kristoff sled, going to see the trolls. You got hit by an arrow and you fell off the sled, into a river. After that, Ranger jumped in after you… we didn't see you until the next day… I think that's when you and him…"

Elsa couldn't take it anymore. This story telling session was at an end. "Anna! That is impossible! I would have remembered it!" Elsa would never have forgotten something like that. Granted, she did remember the attack by the bandits. But another person? It would have been impossible to forget something like that.

Anna clenched her fist, trying to keep her own emotions in check. "Elsa! You don't know because the trolls altered your memory! You were hurt because he attacked you… why do you think you have a black hair! And brown hair! Along with your platinum hair! You would never think about dying your hair before so why now?!"

Elsa's hand flew to the black ad brown strands that still resided on her head. She… was like Anna had used to be… she did remember going to the trolls… but for a man! "That's ridiculous!" she cried folding her arms across her chest.

Anna stood up matching Elsa's posture "Elsa why would I lie to you! I'm your sister! Yes I know I can come up with stupid things! Yes I want you to get married! But I would never go off and just think that you're pregnant without a good reason." By now they were both screaming both on the verge of losing their tempers completely.

Elsa growled almost ready to swirl a blizzard around her. This was crazy! This had to be some sick joke.

But Anna wasn't finished. Far from it in fact "he became your guard last month at the beginning of November! You hated each other at first, but eventually you admitted to me that you were attracted to him. You became close, close enough that you started to get even angrier with him! He had a terrible past Elsa… I've seen it! YOU'VE seen it! He was abused… so badly it was a wonder he even had the capacity…. The ability to even feel the LOVE that he felt for you! He didn't tell you... maybe not at first… But you found out some how. You had visions… they were terrible Elsa."

Elsa covered her ears backing away. This was just too much. "NO! You're making this up Anna!" More ice was appearing at her feet and snow was covering the room at this point. Neither Anna nor Elsa were not even paying attention at this point. They were too busy being angry with each other.

Anna knew that Elsa might have found it hard to believe everything that she was saying… but to flat out just believe it was all some sick joke. Elsa was in denial at this point. Which Anna could understand, but she needed to know the truth. If only they weren't arguing about it.

Elsa just couldn't believe anything that Anna was telling her. It was a good well thought about explanation, but it just seemed too good to be true. Anna couldn't have come up with it all on her own. Kristoff must have helped her out. That was the only possible explanation to the whole thing. She gritted her teeth even harder. "Anna… Get out right now! I have no time for your jokes right now. I don't care what you have to do. Just get Olaf to understand that I am not pregnant!"

Anna stiffened, half expecting Elsa to suddenly continue to keep screaming at her. This was getting her nowhere. Elsa was being to stubborn to except the possibility that was currently was Anna believed about her sister. With a cold glare, Anna just growled "fine…" and stomped out of the room without another word.

* * *

Anna slammed the door to Elsa's room shut, the sound reverberating across the entire castle. Not that she cared. That argument with Elsa had been the worst experience that she had ever had with her sister in the past few months. She never would have believed that she would ever get into such an argument with her. She knew that it was difficult to believe… but still, Anna was just trying to help her. But now Elsa was either going to have to find way to believe her, or she was going to find out the hard way. Which if Anna knew about the pregnancy cycle, would be in about a week. Would Elsa finally believe her then? Probably, but Anna was really hoping that Elsa would have believed her now! It would have made things so much easier than what was happening at the moment. They could have prepared! She could have helped Elsa hide the baby! They could have done it together! But instead, Elsa was being so difficult. Something that Anna would have expected from her self! She never would have expected Elsa to be as stubborn as she had been. Disbelieving yes. But definitely not what had actually happened.

But if Elsa was going to be that way, then Anna had no choice but to leave it be. In time, Elsa would definitely continue to show signs of pregnancy. Signs that would be completely impossible to avoid. Kristoff was right. Elsa might already be showing signs of pregnancy already, but it seemed to not be enough to convince her that she was indeed pregnant.

"Elsa…" Anna whispered, "Why was she being so difficult? It may not have been exactly true, but there is a definite possibility. All I want to do is help you Elsa. I love you… why won't you believe me?"

With a heavy sigh, Anna returned to her room. She needed to be alone.

* * *

Elsa stared at her door, which Anna had slammed shut on her way out. Not that Elsa was surprised. Anna could make a lot of noise, particularly when she was angry. Elsa was sorry, but she was seething with too much rage to care. She was so angry with Anna that she couldn't even think straight. Anna's joke had gone way to far and Elsa was not appreciative. Anna still needed to grow up and Elsa was going to be there to guide her. But this was just too ridiculous. Anna was going to need to come up with better jokes, because that was just too bad, even for her.

Why would Elsa ever consider falling in love and allowing her self to get pregnant before she even got married? Elsa would never under any circumstance ever do such a thing. She would much rather see Anna get married first.

Elsa let out a few deep breaths, trying to calm down, which was very difficult to do at the moment. She looked around the room, glancing at all the ice and snow that she had left in the room. With a single wave of her hand, Elsa melted all the ice away, allowing it to disperse into the air. She really needed to get better control of her self. She had almost… she balanced. If she had lost control any more… she might have seriously hurt Anna… which was something she never could have forgiven her self for… she shook her head. She did not want to or need to ever think like that. She had already done that once. She just couldn't go through it all over again.

She gave another sigh and returned to her bed. She would need to go find Anna and apologize. Just not at the current time. It was more likely that any attempt to talk to the other would most likely just not end well. For crying out loud, they had just gotten into a heated argument after just a few minutes of talking to the other!

So Elsa decided that after cooling off, she would have to go and look for Anna. They had both been out of line.

"Anna…" she whispered, a tear falling down her cheek. "I'm so sorry…"

* * *

**Well now everyone is upset… But don't worry. Things will get better, before they get worse**.


	36. Questions

**Elsa is on a quest to discover the truth behind her predicament. the question is will she be able to find the answers that she seeks? Enjoy!**

* * *

Elsa stood at the window staring off into the sun lit horizon… where her ice castle stood. She clutched her head, feeling a headache coming on. Fragments of images were going through her mind. Memories of a battle… she could vaguely remember flames… did the battle have to do with these flames? No! The only battle that had ever happened at her palace was when Hans had shown up! And he didn't have anything to do with the flames. In fact there was no break out of fire when Hans showed up. She would have remembered. So why did she feel something had happened there? Did it have something to do with her headache? If so… what did it mean?

_You'll be better off now… Elsa…" _a voice whispered in her mind. A voice that sounded very familiar and filled Elsa with a sense of sadness. Elsa shook her head, trying to clear her head. That had happened before, just before this whole Anna and pregnancy incident. What was going on with her? First Anna thinks she was pregnant and now Elsa her self was thinking she was going insane. She really needed to lay off of the chocolate. Maybe all that was causing her to go nuts (considering she had a cake with chocolate chips that was a distinct possibility). Not that she was ever going to consider the idea of abandoning the sweet all together. She would really have to be insane if that was ever going to happen.

What Anna had said about the trolls? Was it true? Had they rearranged her memories? She knew that they had visited them not too long go; she remembered being the reason they had gone in the first place.

But… over someone that she couldn't remember? Had this Ranger… truly meant that much to her? Elsa shook her head, angrily turning away from the window. No it just couldn't be possible. The trolls may have rearranged her entire memory, but… everything? If this Ranger had been her friend, surely he must have made friends with someone other than her. Anna might know more, but considering that they had just had an argument, Elsa might want to look towards someone other than her sister for guidance. Anna had said that he was her personal guard. So then he must have at least been close to Caleb, her guard captain. He must know something bout Ranger.

Elsa would ask Anna later for certain, but she needed time to get a less based opinion from someone who probably wouldn't know about Elsa's relationship with him.

Elsa left her room and made a beeline for the guard's barracks. Caleb would most likely be on some break given that it was just passed lunch. Well she could only hope really. Either way she was going to get some answers. That is, if Caleb was able to provide them.

From the way that Anna described him earlier she did seem to know a lot more about him, perhaps enough to answer anything that Caleb couldn't. but she was only one person; Anna couldn't be the only other person to actually know about this Ranger. There had to be others. Since Ranger was a guard he must have been close to at least another guard. It just seemed impossible for him not to be. No one could just be that closed off without a reason right.

Elsa was no stranger to being alone, considering that she had spent most of her life shut up in her room. but what was Rangers excuse? Surely he didn't have powers that he was afraid to hurt someone with right? I mean what are the chances of that?

Then Elsa remembered Anna's words _"He was abused… so badly it was a wonder he even had the capacity…. The ability to even feel the LOVE that he felt for you!"_ What had Anna meant by that? Well Elsa clearly knew what abuse was, and obviously, Ranger had been abused. But so badly Anna believed that feeling love was a difficult task? Even before Elsa knew love was the control behind her powers, she never stopped loving Anna.

She felt a tear run down her cheek. No one should have to go through such hardship. She wouldn't wish such things on anyone else (unless she hated them) just how bad was it? Anna clearly had an idea but since she didn't live it (nor could Elsa remember the visions that Anna had told her she apparently had), Elsa really couldn't tell just how bad that Ranger had lived prior to meeting her. That being said, why would Elsa ever allow her self to hire someone with the potential to be so unstable? She knew a little about PTSD, and someone with such trauma could be dangerous. So why hire someone like that to be her guard? It seemed so illogical to Elsa that it made absolutely no sense to her whatsoever. So once again she was going to have to ask questions in order to get the answers that she needed.

* * *

Elsa quickly made he way to the guard barracks, where she found Caleb, going over the training procedures with the rest of the guards. After the incident with Elias coup, Caleb had been working overtime to gather more recruits for the Arendelle guard in the past two weeks. Elsa had even had a formal declaration in that time (or rather her council had) explaining the event that had taken place involving to coup. She had to admire Caleb's ethic. Despite the fact that he was working to make sure all the recruits he was getting were well trained, he never seemed to slow down. He was definitely a good captain that was for certain.

"Captain!" she cried, gathering the attention of everyone in the room. The guards immediately turned and bowed to Elsa. Caleb did the same, before straighten up "yes, your majesty?" he asked

Elsa sighed, "Can you come with me? I need to talk to you about an urgent matter." she said

Caleb was confused. Elsa never needed to talk to the guards, let alone him on an urgent matter before; she was busy dealing with the politics of running a kingdom. Even stranger, Arendelle hadn't been a warring nation in centuries, so he was highly doubtful about the idea of Elsa needing to talk to him about war. That and Elsa just rarely ever seemed to need to talk to him. So what was this about? Never the less he wasn't going to argue with the queen so he just turned to his guards and said "start the training without out me men. And don't slack off! I will be back momentarily." He said, before following the queen to a less crowded location.

"May I ask what this is about, your majesty?" Caleb asked politely. He didn't want to come across as rude to his Queen. Offending her was definitely not in his (or anyones) best interest. But he was genuinely curious.

Elsa sighed. She bit her lip, trying to come up with the best way to ask her question. "Caleb… how much do you know about a man named Ranger?"

Calebs eyes widened, shocked by the question. Now he was really confused. One, Elsa had banned any mention of the recently deceased man. Two, why was Elsa asking his he knew the guy. Caleb could honestly say he didn't know much about Ranger, other than the fact he was a good fighter, was friends with the towns dead blacksmith and his daughter and had fire powers that were similar to the Queens own powers. So basically nothing that the queen shouldn't already know. Which in this case meant that she shouldn't be asking him that if she already knew everything about Ranger. Which she honestly should considering the fact Ranger was her personal guard. He had followed her everywhere. She probably knew more about him than Caleb did. So why ask him then?

Caleb sighed "your majesty… I'm afraid I can't answer that. You forbid any mention of him after he died." He said as honestly as possible.

Elsa looked at him confused. Now she was starting to get annoyed with her self. She had banned any mention of him? Was this the reason she had erased her memory of him? The pain of remembering him was just too much for her? Even that seemed farfetched even for her.

She gave Caleb a glare. She needed to get her answers. Now was not the time to hide them "Caleb, I know what I said" (even though she really didn't) she told him, giving Caleb and annoyed look "but I really need your help here ok?" she asked

Caleb shook his head "I'm afraid I can't help you much either way, your Majesty. The only thing that I can tell you is that he was a good soldier even without his powers…"

Elsa's eyes widened. Powers? Ranger had powers? Ok now she really needed to talk to Anna. Forget the fact that she was probably angry with her, if anyone might know about the fact Ranger had powers (or talk about them more freely) it was Anna.

'"Thank you captain" Elsa said as calmly as possible "dismissed"

Caleb bowed, and then walked back to the guards. Elsa frowned so talking to Caleb hadn't helped. But at least she got some answers. The problem was it hadn't been enough of the answers that she needed. So that really only left Anna to be able to help her out. If Elsa knew Anna after a stressful situation, she would go off and do one of two things. Eat chocolate or go see Kristoff. Given that Elsa was closer to the stables at the moment she decided to try seeing if Kristoff was helping Anna distress after their fight.

If there was one thing that Elsa liked about Kristoff, it was that he was able to help Anna whenever she needed it. He was a good man.

But she was getting ahead of her self. Elsa made her way to the stables, where sure enough she found Anna and Kristoff sitting on a bench, Anna still looking like she was fuming. Her face was red and Elsa could see she was a bout ready to blow up again. Poor Anna. Elsa really needed to help her not lose control when around innocent people.

It was breaking Elsa's heart that she and Anna had that fight in the first place. Sure, it had stared because Elsa honestly believed that it was some sort of joke, but still. She hated the fact that it had descended into an argument from there. There just hadn't been any need for it to happen the way that it had. Now her normally optimistic bubbly sister was staring at the ground with a deep frown and a completely uncharacteristically angry glare that could have melted even Elsa's ice. It didn't seem to Elsa that Anna had all managed to get over the argument, nor had forgiven her at all (honestly though, Elsa couldn't blame her). Still Elsa now needed Anna more than ever if she was going to figure out the mystery that was her apparent lover.

Anna noticed Elsa before Elsa could even think to say one word to her. She stood up, given Elsa her glare, tapping her foot impatiently. She was still not over what had happened earlier and she wasn't about to speak to Elsa civilly without a fight. "Well" she growled out angrily.

Elsa sighed; this was getting her nowhere. Anna was obviously expecting her to apologize and probably wouldn't even bother to continue the conversation until she managed to get one. While Elsa was more than willing to apologize for what she had said and for losing her temper, that still didn't excuse why Anna believed that joking about the idea of Elsa being pregnant, nor did it make it funny; it was still annoying and disgusting. Elsa would never do such a thing to Anna.

But if it was true, not even Ana could tell her and that was the problem. But Anna could at least tell her more about Ranger. That is if she happened to know more about him than their earlier argument had revealed.

Torture? Abused… that's what Anna had said to her at least. Ranger must have been abused during his life. Elsa wasn't sure what to believe anymore. Since the trolls had altered her memories, the chances were that she did know, she just didn't remember any of it. She bit her lip trying to remember at least something…

"_Mama Papa!" _a voice that definitely wasn't hers screamed at her. It was so full of pain and anguish and was almost dripping with some sort of blood lust and desire for revenge. Yeah Elsa never would have screamed at her parents with that in her voice. Her parents, however miserably they failed to help her with her powers back then, never did anything to earn them her resentment.

Elsa clutched her head. There it was again. That voice. She clutched the black hair, which almost seemed to be burning. Anna had said that her hair was black (well Elsa had noticed, since she looked in a mirror of course) as well as brown. The brown was the same shade as her mother, so the black hair must have come from Ranger (which considering Anna had a white strand of hair after the events of that night when Elsa had hit her in the head, was probably more likely to be true) but in the past few days (well that Elsa could remember at least) her mind and body had never reacted to something like this. She couldn't even recognize the voice that was screaming at her. If the trolls tried to rewrite her memory, then it hadn't worked out at all, because Anna couldn't even remember the night she got her head frozen!

Anna, immediately noticing Elsa's actions, stopped glaring at her sister, instead showing a look of deep concern. Elsa seemed to have problems lately, even after the events with the trolls. While she could blame some of it on the potential pregnancy symptoms, she didn't know what seemed to be causing Elsa's rather annoying headaches.

"Elsa" she whispered, reaching for her sister's head. Elsa shook her head, not wanting Anna to get too close, just in case. The last thing she needed was for Anna to get injured by Elsa's powers reacting to Anna again. A moment later, the pain subsided and with it, the voice and emotions that had come with it. It was a weird feeling, like another life was inside of Elsa…. she didn't like it, not at all. It was foreign and honestly kind of creepy.

After managing to shaker off the feeling she looked at Anna trying her best to give her sister a reassuring smile "its all right Anna!" she said, hoping her voice wasn't wavering at all.

Naturally Anna was not buying it whatsoever. She could immediately tell that something was bothering Elsa and of course being the helpful if not clumsy sister that she was, she was determined to help Elsa whenever she could (which more than often led to trouble anyway, but Anna was willing to take a chance) she put her hands on her hips "Elsa…"

Kristoff stood up and cleared his throat "Anna, I will see you later." He did not want to be around these two if they happened to get into another argument. (He had heard them yelling when he and Olaf had left the room last time and he did not want to be involved or get in the way. it was far to dangerous for his health.) He gave them both a smile, before walking away.

The two monarchs of Arendelle all but ignored him. Their attention was on each other. Anna, who wanted to help her sister and get an apology (and apologize back, since she was also at fault. She hadn't explained herself very well) and Elsa who desperately needed Anna's help to figure out the problem that she was having at the moment.

The two opened their mouths at the same time "sorry!" they said simultaneously. They both blinked, surprised they had said what the other was thinking. They certainly hadn't expected it to happen so quickly.

Anna was the first to continue the conversation "wait what?" she asked, giving her older sister a very confused look. Elsa bit her lip and started over "Anna… I'm sorry. Yelling at you was so out of line. I know that you meant no harm, but even so, that wasn't very funny."

Anna resisted the urge to groan. Elsa still thought that she had been joking about the whole pregnancy thing. While Anna didn't have any concrete proof as of yet, she was certain that it was at least a possibility, given Elsa's odd behavior over the past few days. But if she were ever going to be able to convince Elsa of that, she would probably need to go along with Elsa for the moment. She put on a mile and said "I'm sorry too Elsa… Kristoff and I just thought with all the chocolate that you've been eating, that might be the reason. After all, you never eat that much chocolate. You eat a lot, but three cakes? That's something that even I wouldn't do. Unless I was very desperate she said, giggling a little.

Elsa quirked a brow. So she had been right. Kristoff was in on the little act with Anna. Well… she was going to have a little take with him, that was for certain." She moved to the bench and sat down, motioning for Anna to sit beside her. Anna did so.

"Anna, can you please help me with something?"

Anna nodded giving her sister a smile.

"Tell me more about Ranger…" she requested.

* * *

**Anna has a lot of explaining to do. Which hopefully means no more ****arguments. Now the next chapter will move on into a bit of a direction none of you are going to like. As i said, its a going to get better before it gets worse… and this was the better...**

**Also remember when I said Elsa's visions were her imagination… I was tired when i said that and I think I need to come up with a better explanation. I might make a plot point on that later on. **


	37. Peril

**Elsa … survive alone? Probably…**

* * *

Elsa walked deep within the North Mountains, heading towards her ice castle, where apparently, Ranger was last seen heading, at least that's what had happened according to Anna. Not that Elsa had any reason not to believe her; for once, Anna had made a rather good argumentative speech about Ranger. Apparently he was the cause of all the stress that Elsa had been feeling over the past few days (except or the past 48 hours.) because he had all but vanished. Elsa asked how, but Anna told her that Elsa her self had never told how Ranger had died; only that Elsa had said she her self was the one that had killed him in the first place. Now that was the one that confused Elsa the most. Why would she have killed Ranger if she was in love with him? That's was when she realize that it must have been related to his powers. Fire powers. That had been the most shocking thing; she wasn't sure why she hadn't seen it coming.

Anna had described in great detail what had happened the night of the winter ball. Ranger and her had been dancing when Elias, one of the deceased guards (Elsa honestly didn't care about him; even without her memory, she never liked him whatsoever.) had crashed the party and with everyone watching on, killed two of Rangers closest friends, inciting his rage, which in turn led to his powers being revealed and led to the death of Elias and his insurgents.

But why? Elsa couldn't believe that she would just willingly kill anyone. It just wasn't in her nature. She had attacked the guards who had attacked her, very near killing them, but that had been in self-defense, not out of malice or intent. So what had happened that had ultimately led to Rangers untimely demise?

Unfortunately, Elsa didn't have the answer to that question. She might have before, but it was lost within her mind now.

That's when she made the brilliant decision to go out alone in the wilderness to search for the truth. If Ranger was last seen at the north mountain, then surely his body must be somewhere (since Anna told her that Ranger had not been brought down after the events that occurred.) therefore Ranger must have been left there. The only problem was that if Elsa had buried him (which she couldn't remember if she did or not, of course) she probably wouldn't be able to find him, which of course would be a very major problem. How was she going to get closure if she didn't know where his body was?

Elsa sighed. This was beginning to give her another headache. Not only that she was craving chocolate again, and of course she had brought some with her (among other things) for emergencies (she didn't know how long she would be stuck here in the mountain looking for Rangers body, no matter how long it would take for her to get to her castle). She couldn't afford to just go off and eat all the chocolate otherwise she would just end up going stir crazy!

But that left her with the question of… what was she going to do when she did find Ranger's body? Leave it? Probably, but she wasn't sure if she should take him back and give him a proper burial… honor his life, rather than leave him alone in the wilderness where his body would rot until he was nothing but dust.

His life… Anna had told her everything that she knew about it. The scars… the freaking out about home… what had his life been like before hand…

_"Banishment and exile"_

She shook her head. It didn't matter… his past was his business, no matter what had happened. If she had accepted him as her lover, then she must have seen more that what his past had made him out to be. She must have seen past what monster he thought he was.

But then… why not just stay with her in Arendelle? Was life so bad for him that he was willing to just through it away without a second thought about what Elsa would have felt if he died? Or was it for another reason?

Elsa looked up at the sky, its clear blue, being covered by the grey clouds that surrounded the mountains. She was still in the forests, but she could clearly see the mountain and her ice castle in the distance. She wasn't to far, but she still had a long way to go.

Not that she was in any rush. Anna, against Elsa's better judgment was determined to do her best to take on Elsa's duties as the Queen of Arendelle. Naturally Elsa was the tiniest bit suspicious about that, Anna really had no experience dealing with the day-to-day matters that Elsa was accustomed to dealing with. Sure Anna was by far not the most graceful thing to ever walk the planet, but surely she wouldn't or even couldn't let the kingdom fall after only a few hours; no one could possibly end up being that bad. She had more faith in Anna than most people did though.

But in the meantime, Elsa had to get to her ice palace. She needed to find out the truth. If anything had happened there, and Ranger was responsible then there must be some amount if evidence, even a trace of him would do.

Elsa wasn't sure what she would be able to find there. At the very least there would be a good amount of battle scars that would exist; that is if she had fought Ranger. She had repaired her castle not long after the events of the thaw; she usually went to the palace with Anna for picnics, or when she needed to think. So if there was any damage, it would be at the palace. It was her only hope at the moment now.

Meanwhile in the distance, storm clouds were making their way to the north mountain.

* * *

Anna sat at the bench, alone, wishing that she hadn't let Elsa go alone, but Elsa had insisted, saying that this was a journey that she needed to take alone. Anna knew that Elsa could easily take care of her self no questions asked. She did have ice powers after all. That didn't stop her from worrying though. if Elsa found what she was looking for; specifically Rangers body or any sort of trace of him, whose to say that it wouldn't hurt Elsa more?

_"Are you sure Elsa?" She asked, concern growing in her voice. Elsa was going off on her own in the probably futile hope of finding a man who was for all intents and purposes most likely dead. He hadn't been seen and Elsa had straight up told her that she had killed him? So what was she hoping to find? Ann didn't know but this seemed like an extremely dumb thing to do, especially if it was Elsa that was doing it. it was a wild goose chase; nothing good would be able to come from this!_

_Elsa shook her head "yes Anna, I am responsible for what happened to Ranger, if I can find him… or what's left of him." her eyes clouded, frightful of the sight that may come to her" then I owe it to him that he will be remembered not as a monster, but as a friend." She said, giving her sister a small smile._

_Anna nodded. She knew what Elsa was saying was true. Ranger was their friend and she had thought about it her self! Ranger deserved more than to just be forgotten and disappear in the mountains the way he had. It was just that Anna was certain that after a few days, his body was either buried under snow or lost t whatever scavengers would have picked away at his bones. "Just… be careful…" Anna asked._

_Elsa smiled "I'm not going anywhere yet Anna" she said with a giggle "I still need to get packed; I don't know for how long I will end up being gone for." _

_Now that was where Anna looked at her with shock written all over her face. Her eyes widened and she stared at Elsa like she was crazy "El.. No!" she said shaking her head madly "Elsa! You cannot be gone for days. I lost you before to those bandits. I don't want…" Elsa placed a hand on her sisters shoulder "Anna.. I need to find him…" she said. "I owe him that"_

Not long after that, she had left with enough supplies with her to last maybe a day or two, which was when he had promised to return fairly soon. Any longer and Anna would have to go out and chase her like crazy (not that she hadn't before). As a matter of fact, Anna was ready to go out and find Elsa right now, just to make sure she was safe. But Elsa had specifically asked her to stay behind. Sure Anna probably wouldn't listen, but it was better if she stayed at least for Elsa's own security about the matter.

But as she looked at the storm in the distance… she couldn't help but wonder if Elsa was safe. That storm was looking particularly deadly this time around and if Elsa was caught up in it, or worse attacked in it.. Anna shook her head. She couldn't think like that. She needed to be more positive about this. Elsa was tough. So Anna needed to be tough for Elsa's sake.

* * *

a loud thunderclap sounded in the distance, almost startling Elsa. God she hated thunderstorms, almost as much as Anna did, namely because of the fact that her parents had died during one. Granted they were on a ship at the time and Elsa was not in fear of drowning, because why in the world would she drown on solid ground, lest she fell in quicksand or something like that! Still that did not mean she was going to enjoy the prospect of getting rained on.

Judging by the sound, it was coming closer and wouldn't take long to get to the north mountain hopefully she would be able to get to the north mountain long before that happened. She would not like to get soaking wet. Just because she was the queen of snow and didn't feel cold didn't mean she liked the feeling of being wet.

Her thoughts returned to Ranger… or at least what Anna had told her about him. about her height, a few inches taller to be exact, but a year or two younger. His appearance, leaner than Kristoff, but still well muscled, brilliant green eyes that sparkled like a gem in the light (though apparently they turned red after he used his powers, and Anna likened them to a raging inferno) brown chocolate hair that turned as dark as the night. Fair skin that turned fairly tan. The descriptions helped, but unfortunately, even with all that, Elsa still couldn't remember Rangers face. it was a blind spot, and she felt awful about it. The trolls had certainly done their work rather well. For once, Elsa hated that she knew the trolls. Sure they had clearly saved her life, but now… she wanted to remember something that she just couldn't. it was a nightmare and Elsa was on the hunt for the truth.

Why had ranger done the things he did… why did he not let her help him? If he had would he still be alive? Would they have still been together? Or…

Elsa was no stranger to politics. The politics would have been a nightmare. But that must not have mattered to her before. So why worry about it now? For crying out loud she was on the hunt for a body, this surely could not be the most pressing issue to think about when clearly there were bigger things to worry about! Speaking of things that Elsa should have been worrying about… a sharp pain course through her stomach, both fatiguing her and causing her unbearable pain. She collapsed to her knees, holding her stomach what was going on? She suddenly felt so tired… but this pain… oh my god what was with this pain. She wasn't hungry… no this felt more terrible than a simple hunger cramp. She crawled on her hands and knees desperate to get to the ice castle more than ever. But this pain was making it more difficult that it needed to be.

She managed to crawl to a tree sliding against it and leaning her back against the bark of the trunk. She ran a hand over her stomach, trying to calm the pain that was rumbling in it. She gave it a glare, before creating an ice chunk in her hand and lifted up her shirt just enough to show her stomach. Thank god she changed into a shirt and a skirt before she had left; a dress would not have helped her at all in this situation. She ran the ice over her skin. The ice soothed her pain slightly, but not enough to get off of the ground. Elsa leaned her head back groaning "what… what's going on?" she whispered. She looked at her bag, which contained her emergency supplies. As she reached for it, she heard a ferocious growl. She looked up and saw several wolves; with there teeth bared and crouched low, ready to attack.

Elsa gulped. She looked around. She was in a wolf's den. Or at least had wandered into their territory. Was the entire world out to get her right now? She tried to stand, but the pain was holding her back. Her breath quickened as she felt stress and fear wash over her. She needed to find a way out of here… she held her hands up trying to stand. For get the pain she needed to worry more about her life than the condition of her stomach. With a shaky breath she called out to the wolves. "I'm sorry… I just needed a place to sit."

The wolves of course being wolves didn't listen or care. They certainly weren't being friendly for they were still growling and ever so carefully inching closer to the prey. Elsa herself.

Left with no choice, Elsa did the only thing she could think of to do.

She shot ice at the first wolf that moved.

Big mistake.

* * *

Elsa collapsed on the ground, every wolf dead, most of them impaled on spikes that she had created. The sight of that alone was making her sick. Her stomach was churning the pain more intense than when the wolves had first arrived. Not only that she was hurt, bad. Her clothes were ripped, her hair disheveled and free of its bun and her breathing extremely shallow and labored.

She clutched the side of her stomach, where a wolf had managed to get in quite the deep cut. She pulled her hand off of the wound, inspecting her hand. Fresh blood was pooled in her hand. She let her hand fall to the ground, trying to gather the strength she had left. She needed to move on. She needed to get back to Arendelle. It was her only hope now… she stumbled over to her bag, picking it up and with difficulty, put it on her shoulder. She grunted with pain, limping back in the direction of Arendelle. She began to see spots, her headache returning, making her feel light headed and nauseous.

She couldn't fail; she just needed to hang on until she found her way back to Arendelle. But it was in vain. Her legs were turning into jelly and the headache grew stronger. "No… I need… need to get… to…" she never finished her sentence, for a moment later she collapsed on the ground falling face first into the snow, her strength leaving her. She felt herself begin to drift off. Alone… there was no one here to help her. She was going to die.

She saw her life flash before her eyes once more. The faces of her parents… Anna… everyone.

'Anna… I'm so sorry.'

The rain began to fall, drenching Elsa in its cold wet grip. The blood and sweat began to wash off of her, replaced by rain, but she felt none of it. For the first time in her life, she felt the cold grip of death looming over her. She felt scared. She didn't want to die.

Her eyes began to close. Despite her best efforts, Elsa just couldn't fight it anymore. Her energy was spent on trying to fend off the wolves. Even the cramps that she was having her gone. She felt so tired. She needed to sleep.

The last thing she saw before she passed out was a cloaked figure walking towards her.

* * *

Anna felt her breathe hitch she stared off into the mountains. The rain had since begun to fall and even from here she could hear the sound of the thunder in the distance. Elsa. She was out there all-alone in a thunder storm. It was just like the situation that their parents had once been in. but Elsa just couldn't die. She was all Anna had left. If anything happened to her, Anna couldn't live without her.

"Elsa… you'd better be alright. You can't die too." she said, a tear running down her cheek.

* * *

**Sorry… I had too! that chapter was getting long and I need to keep you all in suspense...**

**However on the bright side, I am thinking of starting a new story, due to the lack of reception on my non-Frozen story (a moment in the sunset). It will be about Anna and Elsa, a series of sister one shots. I don't know when it will be up or if, but its something I'm considering.**

**Till next time!**


	38. Answers

**Its time I reveal to you all the answer to the question you've all been wondering. the answer is (static sounds out) Everyone wants to know the truth, so here it is. Secrets are revealed have fun!**

* * *

Slowly Elsa felt her self awaken, but it was short lived. Her eyes could barely open and she could hardly feel the motions of her body as though it felt like she was moving. Or rather being carried. She was hanging over someone's shoulder, her arms hanging loosing over the persons back. She could vaguely hear the sound of crunching snow

She tried to move, but her body just couldn't listen to her. She still felt so tired and couldn't even make a sound. Where was this person taking her? why had they stopped to help her, a random stranger?

Alas, her mind drifted into unconsciousness once more.

* * *

Elsa awoke, feeling a blanket over her. She felt numb and her limbs were refusing to move. She couldn't even open her eyes she was so tired. She was vaguely aware of several voices, but she couldn't make them out. All she could hear was the sound of desperation and fear. She felt fear wash over her. Where…. Where was she? Were they planning to kill her or… use her? She suddenly felt a soft hand lift the blanket off of her and lift up an arm

She tried to move, scared at the sudden invasion that she couldn't even see, but she was just to weak to even pull away from whoever was holding her arm. Pain coursed through her arm as the person holding it continued to do something to it. She didn't care, she just wanted to get out of this place and get back to Arendelle but at that moment a hand rested on her shoulder and she heard a voice in her ear "don't move.. You're still injured, we are trying to help you." the voice was thickly accented and not at all hostile… it sounded genuinely friendly…

She drifted off once more.

* * *

Much later, Elsa woke up, this time feeling very refreshed. Her body no longer felt numb and she didn't feel much pain. Her eyes listened to her and opened, but she had to close them, as there was a harsh light above her. She winced lightly, before opening her eyes once again. Adjusting to the light, she sat up, though it proved to be a difficult task. Her muscles were a little sore still, from before, but for the most part she felt much better than when she had fallen and passed out in the forest. She looked around. She was in a rather modest room, with only the bed and a nearby dresser. She was lying on what looked like a makeshift bed, covered by a blanket. She lifted the blanket and blushed. Her cloths were gone, leaving her in her underwear covered only by a thin nightgown, for at least some modesty. However, she did notice that all her bruises and cuts were covered by lots of gauze or at the very least, were applied with medicine. She looked around. Her cloths were on a table next to her. She wasn't sure though if she wanted to get out of the blanket to get dressed. She wasn't exactly in her own room at the palace

as she did, the nearby door opened and in walked a young woman, carrying what looked like a fresh meal for Elsa to eat. He eyes widened when she saw that Elsa was awake, giving her a look of confusion. She quickly put the food down on the dresser and made her way over to Elsa bowing "your majesty, you awake."

The woman was much shorter than Elsa, and rather plump, but had a wise old look on her face that vaguely reminded her of Gerda. She was dressed in what looked like a midwife outfit, or maybe nurses. Neither one would have surprised Elsa; someone had to patch her up while she was asleep. Elsa was just glad that it was a woman. that and she wasn't in some sleazy bandit hideout or shady criminal building. The woman seemed kind. Perhaps she could help Elsa at the moment.

"Umm… where am I?" Elsa asked the older woman

The nurse smiled sheepishly, before saying "oh… forgive me your majesty… you're a Wandering Oakens trading post… and Sauna!" she said happily. "You've been unconscious for the past two days now… " She told Elsa.. Her smile faded slightly.

Elsa felt her eyes widen… two days? How in the world could she have been unconscious for two whole days! She knew that she would be gone a while, but she had wasted precious time that she needed to search for any sign of Ranger! Sure she hadn't meant to fight the wolves and end up unconscious, but she needed to get back to Arendelle! She needed to let Anna know that she was ok. Sure she hadn't found any sign of Ranger, but seeing Anna was more important. However before she could even consider throwing off the blanket (which may be a bad idea because she was in her underwear), The nurse placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a stern look "forgive me your majesty, but you shouldn't be moving. Your body my have been healed, for the most part, but stress won't do you any good."

Elsa shook her head "listen, mamn, I need…" Elsa shut her mouth, feeling a fresh wave of nausea run over her. She retched and before she could even consider the consequences, threw off her covers and ran out of the room barely making it outside before she hunched over in the snow, vomiting bile. She coughed. Gagging at the horrible taste in her mouth. Well, at least there wasn't much, considering that she hadn't eaten anything for the past few days. Elsa spit on the ground, hating what had happened. She felt someone drape a cloak over she shoulders, covering her mostly naked form. Elsa looked up and saw a large man, who was smiling fondly at her, before turning his head away, embarrassed to have caught the queen in her current position. "Can't have you running around uncovered, your majesty." He said, clearing his throat.

Elsa blushed, thankful that the nurse had left her in a nightgown, rather than naked. She covered her self with the cloak, before standing up; and returning to the inside of the building and all but ran to the room that she had originally been in. the nurse was waiting for her.

The woman was tapping her foot, looking almost impatient with the Queen. Elsa really couldn't blame her. She wasn't really being the best patient to begin with anyway, not that she was expecting to be a patient. Then again, she wasn't expecting to be a patient was she? With a sigh, she asked "is there anything I can wear, I don't want to just wear a nightgown"

The nurse nodded, but then said, "Have you been throwing up recently? I certainly wasn't expecting that your majesty."

Elsa nodded "for the past week now… I've been feeling nauseous mamn."

Anything else… fatigue cramping, craving… mood swings?" the nurse asked

Elsa looked at the woman oddly before nodding.

"Your majesty… you might want to sit down."

Elsa sat on the bed. What was so shocking about her symptoms that the nurse was telling her to sit down? it was probably just the flu, though she couldn't imagine where the cravings for the chocolate cakes were coming from. Then again she could just really be hungry.

"your majesty, I can't be too sure, since you aren't showing, but there is the distinct possibility that you might be pregnant" the nurse said, as rather serious look on her face.

Elsa's brain jammed. First Olaf, then Anna now an actual nurse was telling her that she was pregnant! She didn't now what to do any more! It was like the entire world she knew was just… oh dear… forget needing to sit down, Elsa was certain that she might just pass out again,

She placed a hand on her forehead, before looking at the nurse… "Are you sure.." she asked

He nurse shook her head "you are showing all the signs your majesty… but I can't tell you for sure. Unless you start showing. But given that you haven't I'd say that you are about a month along by now."

A month… that would have ben the day she… she blushed lightly. If Anna was telling the truth and Ranger was the one she had sex with that would mean that he was there (and that she hadn't been alone) and if she were pregnant, that would make him the father of her child! But that still didn't answer her question of why they had sex or even worse if he was still alive or if she had killed him. Given that she hadn't found a trace of him she couldn't come up with that conclusion anyway.

She looked at her cloths, which were torn and shredded beyond the point of even needing to wear them again. She sighed "do you have any other cloths I can wear?" she asked.

* * *

Dressed in a winter dress and the cloak that she had been wearing, Elsa trekked on to the north mountain. After the revelation that she might be pregnant,) she trusted someone with medical experience over Anna) she had the nurse had quite the talk involving what Elsa should do, in case she was pregnant. Elsa as well counted the days since het last period and it had been well over four weeks ago.

It took some time as well, but Elsa also convinced the nurse not to reveal her pregnancy and the woman immediately accepted. It wasn't her business to begin with, and Elsa did not need the rumor spreading throughout the kingdom

Now without a doubt on the matter, Elsa decided that the nurse was more than likely telling the truth. However after the talk, Elsa insisted that she needed to get to the north mountain. Oaken, the trading posts manager, offered to take her while his family held things over at the shop. She hadn't wanted that, but Oaken insisted, saying that he wanted to at least protect Elsa in case of another attack. Thankfully, Oaken proved an able guide and they hadn't wandered into any more uncharted territory. However after they had arrived, oaken bid her farewell and returned to the shop

They did have a good conversation though. Oaken was quite the nice man.

"_Oaken, were… were you the one who found me?" she asked. Oaken looked at her for a moment before given her a wide smile "aye, your majesty. I was out gathering branches for a fire when I came across you"_

Well that answered her question of how she ended up at the trading post. After that it was more of an amicable conversation.

Now here Elsa was staring at the north mountain, where she could see her ice castle only a few hundred yards away. Even from here, she could tell that something was wrong. Part of the cliff side was broken off and even the castle itself had some damage that looked like it was being repaired. Elsa gulped. Something had happened here. Something terrible. She felt a pang in her heart. A familiar feeling of sadness

_She made it up the north mountain, her ice palace standing in all of its glory. It looked completely untouched, as if frozen in time. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe he had run somewhere else. With a sigh, she began to turn around when she suddenly heard a roar and Marshmallow, the abominable snowman she created burst through the front door, a giant smoking hole in his chest._

_"Marshmallow!" Elsa screamed jumping off of her horse and running to the Snowman. Marshmallow glanced at her "Marshmallow ok." He boomed in his voice. He then pointed to the doorway. Elsa turned. Ranger was in there. He had hurt Marshmallow._

_Elsa quickly ran inside, where she saw Ranger just standing there. He gave her a grin. The way it looked made Elsa feel sick. It was like she was no longer staring at the man she loved. It was like staring at a shell of a man, like he was possessed. But the look in his eyes. She could tell it was him. But he wasn't hiding behind a mask of pain and arrogance, now it was nothing but rage. _

Elsa walked up to the door of her palace and walked in. marshmallow was standing by a nearby wall looking like he was patching up a human sized hole in the wall. A human sized hole! Elsa ran to it "Marshmallow!" she cried. He giant snow man turned to her "Mama." he mumbled.

"Marshmallow… what happened here?"

Marshmallow turned and pointed to the whole "mama… friend.." he said. Elsa looked at the hole in the wall, before jumping through it, landing in the snow. She was staring at the part of the cliff that had broken off.

"Ranger…"

_Elsa walked closer to him. He seemed… familiar. But she couldn't place his face or his name. "Who are you? Again? Its weird… I feel like I'm forgetting something really important."_

_The boy opened his mouth, his voice soft. "You'll be… better of now… Elsa." He collapse, but Elsa caught him in her arms however, a moment later, she spotted his legs begin to crystallize. _

_She gasped. It was just like when Anna was frozen. Unable to cover the fear in her voice she asked "Am I… the one who did this to you?" her voiced wavered, unable to bear the thought of hurting someone innocent_

_The boy shook his head "no… it was my choice… to go away now…. better that… than to do nothing…. And live as a monster…. I don't belong here… in this world…" the boy brought his hand to his shoulder, grazing Elsa's hand "Elsa… I need you to do me a favor…._

_Elsa looked at the boy. She would do anything she could to help someone in need "all of those people down there…. Arendelle… tell them the truth…"_

_Elsa frowned "Arendelle… the truth." She wasn't sure exactly what that meant. However before she could respond any further, more ice appeared, encasing the boys legs. "It's too late… for me to undo my mistakes… but you can't… mourn for me… you can't…_

_He smiled "good bye… Elsa… sees you again… I'm glad… I got to meet you… oh. And of course… Anna and the others too. I love you…" he brought his hand up to Elsa's face, caressing her cheek. "Never forget… that's the truth…"_

_Elsa stiffened slightly when she felt his hand caress her cheek. But there was something familiar about this boys touch… why?_

_ Her eyes widened as the memory came rushing back. As his hand fell from her face, Elsa grabbed it. "No!" _

_Ranger… he was dying… and it was all her fault. "Ranger! You can't leave me."_

_Ranger's eyes closed and he went limp in her arms as the ice finished encasing his body, breathing his final breath. Elsa felt a tear drip down her face. "Ranger" she whispered. However before Elsa could react the cliff shifted beneath her. She gasped. The cliff couldn't support her and Ranger's weight. However, before she could even attempt to move, she felt marshmallow grab her from behind, yanking her away, just as the cliff broke away, taking Rangers body with it._

This was where he had died. She could remember now. She had promised him that she would tell Arendelle the truth about him… no… about them…

She clutched her head, gritting her teeth. Those trolls. She knew that they had removed her memories for the same reasons they had Anna… Ranger's magic had injured Elsa and with it her memories of him were still a bit fuzzy, but somehow, she could still remember his voice, even if she couldn't remember his face like Anna said. She dreamed she kissed a troll, but still couldn't remember the events that had taken place.

Elsa looked at the ravine. His body was down there. Or what was left of him. Without a second thought, Elsa ran and jumped off of the cliff

Elsa fell; feeling the wind rush around her she readied her powers. Just a couple more feet…. And… she fired a swirl of snow all but halting her descent. Carefully, she focused her magic, slowly inching down to the bottom of the ravine.

On the distance she could just barely make out several shapes at the bottom of the ravine.

Her heart leaped. Was it? Even after all this time? Elsa finally managed to reach the bottom of the ravine, landing in snow. She fell to her knees panting from the (she would later go on to say) reckless stunt that she had just pulled. She stood up, taking notice of the objects that she had seen. Up close she could finally make out what they were,. It was… or rather they were, large chucks of ice and rock, buried under snow, just barely uncovered. Elsa walked towards it, using her powers to lift up the snow, fully revealing what lay underneath. Once she got close enough, she gasped.

Lying there, still frozen over after their fight was what Elsa could only assume was Ranger, his body broken into several pieces after impacting on the ground. Elsa covered her mouth. She had killed him. The undeniable proof that said he was dead.

"Oh…" Elsa gasped, falling to her knees, feeling a fresh wave of tears over come her. "What have I done?"

She didn't know him. Not the way that she had before. But it still hurt. The man that Anna said she loved… was lying here frozen and dead.

Elsa didn't know how long she was there for. But after some time, she buried the remains of her lover under snow once more, before creating a tombstone. She walked up to the ice and gently placed a kiss on it, before she all but ran away, making her way back to Arendelle.

The tombstone read: _ Here lies Ranger… the only man to have warmed my heart._

* * *

**Sorry… Ranger is dead and now Elsa knows she is pregnant… sorry for anyone who was hoping that he was still alive. but can I tell you that this is by far not to be the worst thing I'm going to do? yeah next chapter I'm going to be even more ****despicable. and it rhymes with… (static sounds) **

**we are sorry we cannot continue running our regular scheduled program, due to technical difficulties.**


	39. Taking chances

**Sorry about the last chapter, but its the truth. Ranger is gone…. Oh and on that note. one of my reviewers thought that I would kill Elsa's baby. I have no regret in saying ABSOLUTELY NO WAY AM I GOING TO BE THGAT HEARTLESS! IF THERE IS OPEN THING I WILL NOT DO I WILL NEVER KILL A BABY!**

**Yeah, I can do child abuse, but killing a baby… Thats a little to close to something that happened to me once, so I feel like it would be a slap to my own face. So you have nothing to fear from there.**

* * *

Elsa sat in her room, her fist clenched so hard that it was a wonder that her fingernails hadn't dug into her skin. As it was, her room was once again a (demented) winter wonderland covered in now with icicles hanging from the ceiling gradually increasing in number with every moment Elsa shook her fist. She didn't care anymore. Ranger was gone she was pregnant and Anna had done the worst possible thing that she could have done in the history of her short time as the interim queen. While Elsa was away, Anna thought. She dared to think! That inviting a prince from a neighboring kingdom for some reason that Elsa couldn't even imagine

"_you did what!" Elsa screamed as Anna as she looked at her with shock. Ann flinched obviously frightened by Elsa's tone. Anna had meant well, she really did, but in her time as Queen, Anna had accidently approved the councils notion of a potential suitor for Elsa to visit in the next few weeks. In fact, it wasn't until the next day that Anna had known what she had done. When she did find out, Anna had tried her best to reverse the decision, but unfortunately they had sent out the letter to the nation the night before and sending a refusal letter would not only be confusing it would be rude. The council was worried that Elsa was stressing out to much and was slowly becoming overwhelmed and breaking down from the stress of ruling. Therefore, considering that there hadn't been any progress with the suitors during the night of the winter ball, they were hoping that Elsa would finally accept a marriage propels from someone that was a good choice for her _

_too bad for them that Elsa was currently having bigger problems to deal with. She could not be having a suitor right now. if she was pregnant like the nurse had said then that meant she was going to have to accept a suitors proposal for one good reason. Hiding her babies paternity at any and all cost. Her (she refused to say or even think the word now) bastard child would be in grave danger. Anna had told her that many neighboring kingdoms that had visited during the winter ball had wanted to go out and kill Ranger, due to the fact he had murdered everyone involved in the insurrection that night. If they were to find out that he had been romantically involved with the queen, and had produced a child with her. that child would suffer the most._

_The same as its father. Maybe it wouldn't be abused, but it would be shunned ignored by everyone except the royal family. Isolated. Like its mother. Elsa had the right to claim the child's birthright, name it as her heir, but she was afraid that if the child's father was revealed, her baby would be a target, a surrogate for the fear that had been felt for its father._

_Even worse even if she was able to hide her pregnancy until the birth, even if she married another prince to hide it all, if the child had fire powers, then there would be no hiding it._

_What was she going to do? Its not like she wanted to get married. She wanted to rule her nation for a while long before hand. But Anna had forced her hand now_

_Anna flinched "I'm sorry Elsa I didn't mean to!" she said, knowing full well that there really wasn't an excuse for what she had done. She had been so tired and bored. How Elsa was able to do what she did everyday was a nightmare. Anna couldn't imagine doing what Elsa had to do every day. _

_"I don't care Anna, do you realize what I have to do now?!" she screeched. She grabbed Anna by her arm and dragged her into an empty room, locking the door behind her. She then turned and glared at her sister "Anna, you once told me that you think I might be pregnant and the might be true!" se whispered harshly "I've had morning sickness since two days ago, I'm feeling a verity of emotions and…" she gripped her hair threatening to pull it right out of her scalp. She let out a quiet scream, trying not to let out a torrent of snow. She needed to remain calm and find out how much time that there was in between now and when the suitor arrived. She needed to find a way to hide her ever-expanding stomach just in case the suitor arrived when her baby bump started to become visible_

that had been several weeks ago. it was now February and Elsa was still trying to keep calm. Apparently, the prince had been dealing with a insurrection that was threatening his kingdom and was just now returning to a more stable environment for his kingdom. He couldn't leave until he was certain the kingdom was safe from any harm and had returned to its previous unharmed state. Now he had sent a letter, saying that he was to arrive in the next few days, and those they should prepare for his arrival. Wow, even in this letter, Elsa had to admit that he was a bit of a snob. Maybe not so much in person, but still she was having her doubts about the situation at the moment. She would have no problem turning him away if she didn't happen to like him, but she really needed to decide quickly, because she needed to unfortunately marry someone in order to help hide her baby. She couldn't go off and turn away everyone because she would have to make a choice. She was not going to risk the life of her baby because of a moment of weakness and passion that had occurred in her own private life. That had been her choice and while maybe not the best one, anyone who argued with her on the matter could go off and die as far as she was concerned.

If only she had more time…

* * *

Anna groaned feeling quite upset with herself. She really hadn't meant for all of this to happen. Plus she was at war with her self. Not long after Elsa had returned, Elsa had revealed that a midwife from outside the castle had performed tests on Elsa confirming that she was indeed pregnant, or at least that it was possible. Elsa and Anna themselves and snuck into the doctors office and after managing to find a stethoscope, Anna had used it and much to her shock, heard a heartbeat where it shouldn't have been. Elsa's stomach. The two were shocked and they couldn't believe it.

_Anna dropped the scope on the ground he hands flying to her mouth. She heard it. a small thumping, like a drum. She would recognize it anywhere. She had felt it many times when she and Kristoff lied together under the stars. A steady drum telling her that his heart was beating in sync with hers. Her true love._

_Only now she was hearing it within the confines of Elsa's stomach, but on closer inspection she also heard one where Elsa's heart should have been, meaning that it hadn't been a mistake. A baby was growing inside of Elsa. _

_Anna looked at her older sisters, whose body and face was mirroring her own. Her blue eyes were wide with shock, her hand covering her mouth as she started at her stomach. A baby. There was baby growing inside of her. She and Ranger had indeed been intimate. _ _Which meant that they were going to have even more problems to be dealing with. _

_"Elsa…what are we going to do?" she asked_

_Elsa was too much in shock to answer. her hand found her way to her bare stomach, her thoughts racing as she remembered the journey that she had taken. Her baby… she almost killed her baby. The fight with the wolves could have ended disastrously. But as if someone was looking out for her, her baby was still alive, growing healthily inside of her. she felt a smile tug at her lips and her other hand reached her stomach. Her baby…_

_"we aren't going to worry about anything right now… this is a happy moment… the happiest moment of my life."_

Elsa was going to become a mother. And Anna an Aunt. Anna had never been so happy in all her life. The problem remained however that the Queen could not be seen pregnant without having something vital by her side, namely a husband. People were already on edge at the idea of Anna her self-dating a commoner, the idea o a queen pregnant by wedlock would not do very well.

Anna had fixed that to be sure but she was sickened by the idea of it. the idea of Elsa having to have another man touching Elsa in order to hide the pregnancy. The thought alone was enough to make Anna almost hurl.

Plus it almost felt like an insult to Rangers memory. For crying out loud, if everything went well, Elsa would be able to raise her child, but under the façade of having it be the child of whatever prince that she would marry. Prince or princess whoever child of Queen Elsa and King 'who gave a crap' as far as Anna was concerned. Her niece or nephew didn't deserve to be raised by another man who wasn't the father, or be kept in the dark about Ranger and who he was. As far as the kingdom was concerned, Ranger was a threat who had almost killed everyone in the winter ball. Anna knew that it wasn't hard to see why people were so afraid of him; fire was destructive. Ranger had a terrible past filled with nothing but pain. Plus he had a temper. He never acted upon it much, but she could tell in some of his actions and responses with her and Elsa in their conversations.

But given that Elsa had left him at the bottom of a ravine, he would never get the chance to watch his own child grow into the child that Anna would have believed he wanted.

But unfortunately it was most likely the only way for Elsa to hide the true paternity of her child and keep it safe from possible harm or retribution.

Anna just wasn't sure that she would be able to live with it for too long without keeping quiet. Ranger was her friend; more than that he meant more than anything to Elsa.

She sighed. Elsa was going to have a lot on her plate to deal with and Anna wanted to be there to help her. it was just that she wasn't going to be happy watching Elsa marry someone that she might not love. Even if Elsa did fall in love with him, it would still be torture raising her child as her 'princes' own.

What were they going to do? The prince was going to be arriving any day now and everyone was preparing for his arrival. The council had even suggested to Anna they throw a lavish festival I his honor. Jeez it wasn't even a coronation day (or even more nauseating a wedding day) and they were already wanting to throw a celebration.

Anna wouldn't mind such an event if Elsa did come to truly love the prince; she wanted Elsa to be happy, but it still felt so wrong. The only alternative was explaining that Elsa was pregnant with someone else's child. Which would have a much steeper price.

Elsa looked at her belly, which as of this point hadn't really changed much to the naked eye. She wasn't expecting it too for another month or two. After she found out she was pregnant, she took to the library, always looking at books to help accommodate her pregnancy, according to the books her belly would start showing in about a few weeks. Meaning much to her annoyance, she would have to get married within about a week. She wouldn't have much time after that to hide her baby bump without arousing suspicion.

Darn it all. That was the last think she wanted, but she would need to keep up some façade in order to hide her baby. She wasn't going to risk its safety. Ranger was seen as a monster. She did not believe it of course, but she didn't want to risk her babies safety so she would have no choice but to pass if off as the princes. She lowered her shirt and sighed. It was going to be so out of character for her to get married straight out the gate like that, but she needed to do something, in order to get the prince to believe that this baby was his but she was going to have to… ughh. She couldn't even remember what she had done with Ranger, but since they had… it was just tat she couldn't remember and doing it again was going to feel odd. That was the only way she was going to be able to describe it.

She hadn't gone to even see him since she buried him. The pain in her heart was just too much for her. But her child did deserve to know about him, even if their relationship would have to remain hidden for the entirety of the child's life.

She lowered her nightshirt returned to her room and stared out the window, where she could see her ice palace in the distance. Where Ranger was buried. Her hand rubbed her stomach once more "Ranger… I promise you… I won't le this child… our child. Grow up the same way you did. I will love him or her… I will let them know that you were a hero and a good friend."

A spike appeared in her hand and she turned throwing it against the door, where it shattered upon impact. She collapsed to her knees, letting out an anguished filled scream of despair and proceeded to cry. Her hands rubbed her belly once more "I'm sorry,…" she whispered to her baby "I'm so sorry."

* * *

Anna walked up to Elsa's door a chocolate cake and two bowls of soup on a tray with her. it was almost lunch time and Anna wanted to spend some time with Elsa before she had to go back to doing her duties as the Queen. After she had gotten back, the council had noticed her condition and insisted that she rest for another day.

Anna of course ha no problem doing Elsa's duties for one more day, especially after everything that Elsa had been through on her way back from the ice castle

_"Elsa!" Anna cried as her sister walked up to her wearing a winter dress and cloak that clearly wasn't hers. But Anna didn't care. She was just happy that Elsa was back after four days. Whatever Elsa had done to get to the north mountain the first time clearly didn't work this time because Elsa was gone for so long that Anna was certain that she would have gone out to look for Elsa her self. if she was gone any longer. As it was since Elsa might be pregnant, that also meant her niece or nephew was in danger too. She tacked her sister, who grunted in pain as she felt her sister slam into her. Her injuries throbbed from the pressure than Anna put on her, particularly the one that was on her stomach she hadn't told anyone about it yet (obviously). That dint mean of course that she wasn't happen to see her. She gently hugged Anna back, "I'm sorry I'm late Anna, I ran into quite a bit of trouble on my way there."_

_Anna let go of her sister and proceeded to give her a glare. "You have been gone for nearly a week Elsa! Do you have any idea about ho worried I've been!" she screeched at Elsa._

_Elsa shook her head "I'm sorry Anna… I..' she said, before shaking her head "I found him Anna.." she said sadly, while a tear Ran down her cheek._

_Anna gasped. So it was true… "Elsa…" she whispered. Elsa just leaned into her sister, before breaking down into sobs._

Anna had later told Kristoff and Olaf the news and they two were saddened by learning the truth. Though they had barely spoken to Ranger, they didn't like the idea of Elsa being alone and pregnant any more than Anna did. They felt that Elsa deserved more than just what she had now. But there was nothing that could be done. All they could do was help Elsa with whatever Elsa would have to go through.

Kristoff thought that Elsa should just go through with the pregnancy and not get married. She was the queen she didn't have to explain her self to anyone. What she did was her business and as Queen she should be able to do as she wanted without judgment. It shouldn't matter whose baby it was; it was her business.

While Anna could agree with that statement she told Kristoff that as Queen it was far to risky. She couldn't just go off saying she casually got pregnant. As Queen, Elsa had to maintain a regal and elegant poise. Having a baby with no father didn't help her there.

Which was why she had to marry the soon to come prince. Anna made her way to Elsa's room and without even knocking opened the door, where she found Elsa on the floor crying.

Anna quickly walked into the room placing the tray on the nearby table before moving to Elsa's side and wrapped her arms around Elsa.

"I'm sorry."

* * *

**Like I said, Despicable. Elsa is going to have to marry in order to hide her baby and her relationship with Ranger. I know you guys aren't going to like it, but forced romance is about to come your way. Whether or not Elsa actually falls for this prince… yeah.**


	40. Visitors

**Here comes the prince. **

* * *

The next morning there were horns trumpeting from the dock so loudly that Elsa and Anna could clearly hear them from the castle gardens while they were walking to the front door of the castle. It was almost nauseating, especially since Elsa was suffering from minor migraines. Despite the fact that Elsa couldn't feel the cold and he baby bump was not yet even close to showing. She was wearing a rather heavy coat that covered her body. She felt so nervous wearing a dress these days, as if expecting her stomach to suddenly expand and show off her baby to the world. Though she was more than happy that a piece of Ranger had survived, she was worried about it. Ever since the incident with the stethoscope, Elsa couldn't help but admire her stomach every time she awoke up or went to bed. The fact that a life was growing inside of her was just so… aweing to say the very least about it. Though she had no real memory of it (though she could vaguely recall the pleasure and the feelings that night), she was happy that it had happened. Because she loved her baby.

Too bad she couldn't proudly proclaim it to the world. She needed to do anything she could to protect it. she owed it to her self and Ranger. If anyone would harm her child, not even her 'prince' would be able to survive her wrath. She was never going to let that happen. She had lost her parents. She almost lost her sister. She had lost her lover. She was not going to lose her baby too.

Elsa and Anna made their way to the docks; the very same docks that they had met Ranger at. It was almost surreal. The ship was even docked at the same pier. Now to Anna that was just sad. It was as if the dock had some sort of significance to love and romance. It just wasn't fair. But she had to hold her tongue. She could insult the prince behind his back later.

The ship was huge, a frigate as a matter of fact. That made sense considering the Kingdom had been dealing with the skirmish some timer ago; the kingdom Ridgefall if she remembered correctly had just finished with the skirmish that had been a problem, as Elsa had read in their letters. The prince, Prince Ivar, son of King Vidar, was quite the warrior, and the leader that Elsa would admire in a war time. But of course she had yet to meet him in person. Judging by the horns, her first impressions were that he was a little more pretentious and arrogant than she would like him to be. But of course she had yet to see him.

"Make way for his majesty, King Vidar, and his son, Prince Ivar!" a man dressed in what looked to be a royal vizier outfit for the Kingdom of Ridgefall. The next moment, a man dressed in silver armor and a flowing gold cape, descended from the deck. Elsa looked at him, judging by his grey hair, that was most likely King Vidar. His very presence was intimidating. He was even bigger than Kristoff . His face was stern, his eyes cold and steely, but showed a wisdom that Elsa could only hope to reach one day. By his side was a young man with flowing blond hair, compete with a beard, wearing black armor and a red flowing cape. He was almost as brawny as his father, but was actually a hair bit taller, if that made any sense. Elsa grimaced. So far she wasn't impressed. The fact that they were descending in such a manner gave her the impression that they actually thought they were from Asgard itself.

this was the prince that Anna had gotten? He better be worth it. because she didn't have ant time to go looking for a new one at all. It was pretty much all or nothing at this point. Within four weeks her stomach would start expanding to accommodate her little midget. After that it would be almost impossible to hide the paternity of the baby. Unless of course her baby started sneezing fires whenever it wanted too. That was the worst case scenario. So Elsa was going to have to make due with this prince Ivar. Even if she didn't end up liking him much.

Vidar was the first to reach them. up close he seemed even more intimidating. His face was old, filled with wrinkles and one of his eyes seemed to have been gouged out as it was covered by a golden (seriously, even Elsa was not that obsessed with one color… much…), making him look kind of like Odin of the Viking legends. Elsa wasn't too familiar with him, but from her studies following Anna's blunder, he was a kind, but firmly stern king. He was not one to take crap from anybody and would only fight if necessary, rather than risk the blood of his people just for the sake of making a point. In fact, his last war was roughly at the time he had been around Elsa's age, back when he was a prince. He had fought a legendary battle against invaders. Elsa assumed this was when he lost his eye. His Son, Ivar was more of a mystery. He was confident, yet mild manner and a legendary swordsman among his people. In the battle he had fought they say that he won without taking so much of an arrow from the enemy, as if he was blessed by the gods themselves with invulnerability.

Vidar bowed to Elsa "Queen Elsa, it is an honor to be welcomed to your fine country."

Elsa smiled at the old king "the honor is mine, king Vidar" she said with as much grace as possible. She then looked at Ivar, who was given her a very charming smile "Queen Elsa…" he said bowing.

"Prince Ivar." She said. To her surprise Ivar gently grabbed her hand and kissed. Elsa blushed, snatching her hand away. The gesture wasn't really inappropriate, but that was a little much.

Anna huffed quietly. Ivar was nice and quite polite, despite the superfluous nature of his arrival, but she still felt annoyed by the idea of Elsa having to do this. Unfortunately it was probably going to be her only chance. Besides she didn't know Ivar, she couldn't just turn him away without at least giving him a chance to prove himself (not that it mattered much anyway, there was only one chance for Elsa to hide her baby and this was it, unfortunately.

Elsa then turned away from the king and prince and said "follow me, our carriages are waiting."

* * *

after arriving at the castle, Elsa had Kai show Vidar and Ivar their room, which were located in the royal guest wing. Because of her close relationship with Ranger, Elsa forbid that room to ever be used again, as it would have felt weird. Granted the room hadn't been used since the last time Ranger was in there. If Elsa remembered correctly, his things were still in there. Anna had told her that when explaining Ranger to her that day

Elsa hadn't gone in there, but order the maids to leave the room be. It had been cleaned of course because Elsa wasn't going to allow it to remain dusty. She did need to maintain her castles cleanliness after all.

As of the moment Elsa was in her study, dealing with some documents that she was writing for her coming escapades with the Ridgefall royal family. As part of their visit, Vidar had politely requested some aid from Arendelle to help rebuild his kingdom following the skirmish… an all to easy precursor to marriage. Which would help Elsa to be sure, but she just wasn't happy with it anyway. later today she was to be having a meal with the prince himself… alone. Elsa was not particularly happy about that either. She knew that's what they were expecting because he was a suitor and as such he was expecting to have some tender moments with Elsa, but still… she could be certain her baby was feeling just as annoyed as she was about it.

She huffed a sigh, running a hand over her face. she was tired and her baby wasn't making it any easier. The baby was taking most of her energy as it was anyway. she needed some coffee of something just to keep herself awake during the meal at this rate.

She glanced at her clock. Only about another half hour until the meal was ready. Meaning she had to leave now in order to prepare herself

Note to self. Look nice, but not like you want to go off and get married to the guy. No marrying a man you just met. At least on the very first day. but of course she didn't have any time to consider a very long courting period. Darn it all. She surmised that they would have to get engaged soon and definitely married before the next 4 to 8 weeks were over with. Otherwise she was certain Ivar would no of her pregnancy. Not only that but being intimate with his would also be difficult if he noticed a baby bump when he tried to take her to bed.

Rushing was not even close to the word that word describe the situation that Elsa was in right now. this was just almost two much for her to be dealing with right now. but unfortunately she didn't have a choice. She couldn't take the chance that her baby would become a target for her lovers enemies, whoever they might be.

She finished the paper, then stood up. with a hand on her stomach, she took her heavy cloak and walked down to the dining room, where Ivar was going to be waiting for her.

* * *

Ivar watched as the Queen entered the room still wearing that heavy cloak that she had been wearing the moment they had met. He would have understood why she was wearing it at the docks; it was quite cold out, with it being winter and all, but inside the castle? Arendelle was confusing. But of course he wasn't going to question the queen or her actions, because it wasn't proper to do so. Instead he gave the approaching Queen a smile he stood up from the table " Queen Elsa." he said, Elsa curtsied slightly, feeling her stomach groan in response. "Prince Ivar." She said before sitting down "tell me, how are you enjoying your first day in Arendelle?" she asked. She needed to talk to him about something she supposed.

Ivar smiled "Arendelle is quite the city, your majesty; my only problem with just is that I have not yet gotten the chance to explore it myself. " he said with a honest and sincere tone.

Elsa gave him a chuckle "well after our meal I would be glad to show you around the castle today at least." She said

Ivar nodded "that would be quite lovely your majesty."

* * *

for the next hour, Elsa and Ivar talked. Despite Elsa's first impression being that Ivar was quite arrogant, he seemed more like a down to earth kind of guy. Ivar was quite nice… too nice as far as Elsa ws concerned. That was ok, since he was taking the chance to marry Elsa, but it still made her feel bad about the fact all of this was a lie!

Elsa and Ivar chatted amicably, and laughed together talking about things that ranged from interests to the stress of running a kingdom. Elsa was half expecting the prince to just talk about himself the entire time, but instead he rather talked about the beauty and nature surrounding his kingdom. He enjoyed walking along the rivers, taking trips in to the forests, interacting with the animals he came across. He just enjoyed life as he saw it, not his rank or influence within his kingdom. He barely spent time within the castle walls, preferring to be among the people in his spare time. It was so unlike Elsa who preferred to be with her family and rarely went into town, usually attending to the needs of her kingdom long before she tended to herself. Since Ivar was still a prince, he didn't have to worry much about the responsibilities as much as Elsa did. It was almost like he was a less bubbly version of Anna, who saw everything peacefully.

"so your majesty… " Ivar asked "I've talked mostly about myself, but… I've yet to hear more about yourself." He said, before taking a quick bite of the meal that Elsa's kitchen staff had prepared for her and her suitor.

Elsa didn't really have very much to say. her life before the great thaw was fairly uneventful, having spent every second behind closed doors. So she simply gave a nonchalant shrug and stated "I'm afraid that there isn't much to me… I enjoy reading, geometry and eating chocolate. I'm afraid that I haven't had as much of a carefree life as you have, Prince Ivar. I was prepared to be queen for most of my childhood same as you have." she said, gingerly sipping her drink.

That was true, but she didn't really want to go into detail about her childhood. there really wasn't much to discuss about that. there was really no point.

Elsa shifted in her seat, hoping that Ivar was almost finished with his meal. He wanted to go around the castle and Elsa just wanted to get it over with. She could feel her stomach churning with its contents, as if getting ready to eject itself again. Elsa raised a hand to her mouth. She puffed her cheeks before she swallowed. She needed to get out of here and show Ivar around the castle before nightfall, just so she could get back to her room and avoid any sort of detection with her pregnancy.

She quickly gave Ivar a smile and stood up "shall we?" she asked

Ivar stood up, nodding "we shall."

Elsa led Ivar into the castle gardens. She figured that since he seemed to enjoy nature that might as well be one of the best places to end the night. He stomach had been acting up during the entire night and it felt like it was getting increasingly harder to be able to hide it without arousing suspicions. She was able to pass it off as being ill from the food, but she needed to get out of here and fast, just in case.

The moment that Ivar spotted the castle gardens, his eyes widened; it was almost like he was at home once more. If the gardens were this majestic, he couldn't imagine what the rest of the country looked like. He made his way to one of the many patches of flowers a soft light white flower. He looked at Elsa really quickly, before plucking it and gently placed it in her hair.

Elsa looked up at the prince, pink lightly dusting her cheeks "Prince Ivar?" she asked. She stared straight into his blue eyes, for the first time in a while feeling a sense of hope. She bit her lip, trying to calm her nerves. It was only the first day he was here after all.

Ivar cleared his throat "forgive me your majesty… I couldn't resist. That flower suits you."

Elsa's hand reached up and touched the flower. It was soft. "thank you." she uttered softly "I'm glad you enjoy the garden so much." She said to him, hoping she wasn't sounding too bashful.

Ivar laughed "it had only begun your majesty." He told her "please… show me more." He asked, gently taking hold of her arm Elsa smiled, gently pulling him in the direction of the path. "well…"

* * *

Anna watched Elsa drag Ivar into the garden, feeling her stomach churn. Even from a distance she could see the chemistry between her and the prince; just because Elsa wasn't the type to go off and marry someone quickly, didn't mean she didn't find someone attractive. The prince was being quite bold, despite his mild manners. Elsa of course just wasn't used to such things; she was very shy and introverted after all.

Not only that Ivar was attractive; even Anna had to admit that. he would make Elsa a fine husband to be sure…

She looked up at the sky, where a single star could be seen, shining brightly over the night sky. She bit her lip. Was that Elsa's shining star? A sign that everything was going to be ok? Anna certainly hoped so, because Elsa was going to be needing it. Ivar was going to be stay for a while, and Elsa was trying to hide her baby. Factor in the possibility that Ivar would propose and insisted on having a wedding and Elsa was going to have her hands full for a while.

If he did stay (which was for certain going to happen since that's exactly what Elsa wanted from this.) then there would be no problem in hiding the baby. At least until the birth.

With a very angry sigh, Anna walked back into the castle and went up to her room slamming the door shut.

* * *

**Yeah, Elsa seems to like the Prince, but not to fear, she only finds him attractive. Elsa is going to have to rush the wedding for sure, but she is not going to throw caution to the wind just yet. it took her a while to admit she liked Ranger remember?**


	41. Walking

**Some more romance with the two monarchs! yay!**

**Also… 30000 views (proceeds to foam at the mouth and faint from absolute shock) Oh my god thank you all! thanks each and everyone of you very much!**

* * *

Elsa led Ivar to the center of the gardens (though she did not lead him to her favorite spot; that was going to remain private to everyone, even Anna) where there were the most concentrations of the many flowers. She glanced back at Ivar, who had almost gleeful look on his face as he looked at the many flowers. Elsa would have almost laughed if she weren't the regal poise queen that she was. Ivar was a nature lover, which e almost wouldn't have believed if he wasn't giving her a down right insane look in his eye when he turned to look at her. Then again there was also the flower in her hair (though that just might have been because he truly did believe that she looked good in it.

Elsa really wasn't sure what to think of Ivar at this point. He seemed nice enough; heck even his father, for how intimidating he seemed, was fair and regal himself. Of course she hadn't seen him much because she was a little to busy with his son, but considering that her council was dealing wit him and no one had come to get her (nor had he demanded her presence) he seemed like he could have been an ok kind of person, king or not.

Ivar smiled as he stared at all the lovely flowers that made up the garden. He walked over to one in particular, running a finger over the purple petals that the flower had. "This flower" he whispered.

Elsa stared at him. The flower was nothing special; it was fairly common in Arendelle; there were many of them just hanging on the grove of the tree. Yet to Ivar, it was something remarkable…

"You seem… impressed." Elsa said politely, not sure that there was anything else to say about Ivar's actions. He was quite peculiar. He seemed to take in the beauty of almost everything around him. She never would have expected this from him. His life seemed so, relaxed, even for the heir to a kingdom. To be able to see the beauty in everything? Elsa wasn't sure she would ever be able to do that. There was so much that she still saw as dangerous, herself included. She did admire beauty when she saw it, but it just seemed so different watching Ivar handle the flower with such grace and care, especially since he was for a lack of a better phrase, a muscle bound prince. She would have almost expected him to care more for his strength, but he seemed more like a gentle giant more than a solider.

Ivar glanced at her letting go of the flower "I am, your majesty. You see, Ridgefall, is much harsher than Arendelle. This time of year, it's always in a blizzard and not many things grow during that time. I can't take the time to admire the beauty of such things during this time of year. If anything the fact that you had so graciously invited me here, regardless of the reasons, I can't help myself." he gave her a sly grin. "After all, a beautiful Queen must also have a beautiful country." He said

Elsa blushed from the flattery of his words. He seemed very bold. He was almost like Ranger, blunt and to the point (though if Anna had told her correctly, Ranger had been much less suave in his flirting with her) and she still wasn't used to it at all. She couldn't help it. As far as her memory went this was the very first time a suitor was actively trying to do such a thing to her, even if this whole thing was a sham to begin with.

But it couldn't be helped. Besides, despite anything she couldn't help but like Ivar's attitude. He hasn't once mentioned her powers; something she liked. Just because she was the Queen of ice and snow, didn't mean she enjoyed being referred to as such. It was like that was the first thing anyone noticed about her. To be fair, it was one of her most noticeable qualities, but still… couldn't she be seen for something other than that for once? Ivar seemed to be one of those people.

She felt a pang in her heart. Like her heart was broken. At the same time the black hair on her head burned, causing her to wince slightly. She grimaced, but shook it off. There wasn't any time for her to be worried about something like this. She needed to make sure she didn't look suspicious in front of Ivar. She needed to look like the queen she was born to be; the queen she was today.

Then again what queen goes around getting married to the first guy you picked up just so you could hide the fact that you were pregnant? She couldn't imagine anything like that had happened before. Seemed like everything that was going wrong only happened to her.

Elsa's life was just very confusing right now.

Elsa cleared her throat and walked beside Ivar. "I'm glad you are enjoying yourself Prince Ivar." She said sincerely. Ivar chuckled "is there anywhere else of interest you would like to show me, Queen Elsa?"

"Well there is a town…" she said

* * *

Anna walked to the stables, where Kristoff was getting ready to leave. Since it was a still the Winter season, Kristoff's job was at an all time high this time of year; he was needed in the mountains to gather the ice in the lakes or even off the walls of the mountains. Which meant that Anna would be alone much more this time of year. Elsa was too busy hiding her pregnancy and Olaf, while a good playmate, was not able to hang out with Anna all the time, despite the laxness of his day. So if Anna was going to be doing anything right now, she might as well go see Kristoff before he left to go be in the mountains for a few days collecting the ice he so desperately liked to collect. Maybe one day he would just get ice to make a sculpture of himself. It certainly wouldn't surprise Anna; he was just that crazy sometimes. She was just going to miss him and she didn't want to miss this chance. It was inevitably better than watching Elsa go off with Ivar.

It still felt so wrong to her. Ivar didn't seem like Hans (she would kill him if he was, regardless of the consequences), but Elsa didn't really love him; not the way she should anyway. One; Elsa would never marry a man she just met. Two; the entirety of Ivar's relationship with Elsa, no matter how much they might have grown to love each other was based on a lie! A lie was never a good way to start a relationship, for you would never really know the person; if Hans had been smart enough to continue the façade that he had initially had, then Anna was certain that would have been her relationship with him now. The point was that Ivar was being locked into a wedding that Anna had set up, believing that Elsa might come to love him, something Anna wasn't sure could ever happen. Could more than one true love exist? Maybe, but Anna had never experienced the matter or knew of anyone who did. Her parents were true loves; she and Kristoff were true loves. Elsa was the only person who might even have more than one true love, but only because she was searching for a husband to hide her former true loves baby! Which meant that if Elsa was going to have a chance at true love again, this was definitely not the best way to show it off.

Anna sighed. This was just one completely awful mess that no amount of help was going to fix. The only thing that Anna could hope for was that her family wasn't fragmented by Ranger and the actions that he had partaken in with her sister. she was happy that some portion of him survived, of course. His legacy shouldn't end with pain and suffering; really Anna surmised no ones should.

The last thing she remembered of him… was the rage… the pain… the fear… because Kayla and Erhard had been killed in front of him.

The two had, after the events of the party, had been buried in the royal cemetery, as to Elsa it was one last gift to Ranger; they were the closest thing to family he had at the time, even if he never wanted to admit it. They didn't deserve to be forgotten anymore than Ranger had been, even if no one knew about them. She supposed that Elsa had done it because she felt that it was better than letting them be buried with no one to mourn them.

Anna hadn't visited them. Someone should. Ranger certainly couldn't, given that he was in the exact same position that they were. So maybe after saying goodbye to her boyfriend, she would go see them.

She made her way to Kristoff and Sven, who were loading the last of their supplies onto the sled. Which mostly consisted of carrots and drinks. Anna would never have believed that someone could eat so many carrots (let alone share them with an animal), but kristoff sure proved her wrong. But she loved both of them anyway. Sven for one could definitely brighten up the day whenever Kristoff was being grumpy. Heck Sven was always the brighter of the two (though neither one could match Olaf whose bad day amounted to the most unlikely of events, like losing his carrot nose. he was almost never unhappy; there might have only been one time in the past few months where he wasn't). Anna smiled that was her life.

Kristoff notice her approaching "Anna!" she called, getting the last box onto the sleigh, just as Anna stopped next to him. She wrapped her arms around him, giving him a kiss on his lips before pulling away. She then held Kristoff close, burying her head in his chest "come back to me… please."

This was the first time the two would be separated by Kristoffs job; he was needed out there. He wasn't yet a prince of Arendelle. He didn't have the sane luxuries that Anna had grown up with. Not that either one cared of course. It was just that he had a job to do.

He gave Anna a smile lifting her chin to meet his eyes "I'll be back in a few days. I promise." He said giving her a kiss once more, before he pulled away. He then walked to his sled and said "come on Sven!", taking off into the mountains.

Anna watched him go. He would be back.

Elsa led Ivar into the town; there would be plenty of time to see the castle since he was staying there. But the town was something that Elsa wasn't sure that they would be able to get to, at least very quickly, since she didn't know how long she had. Her stomach continued to churn and she had been doing her best to hold it in. she had a morning sickness spasm this morning, but considering pregnancy, she might just end up being a little more crazy than she thought. Good thing she already ate with him earlier. The last thing she needed was a craving, which so far, she hadn't gotten today. Just lucky she supposed. She was going to need it for the next few days. If Ivar found out about her pregnancy… she just wasn't sure what was going to happen hopefully he wouldn't declare war… or even worse, reveal her secret. That was the last thing she needed. Nope she needed to make sure he believed that this baby was his….

All this was making Elsa's head hurt and that pain hadn't gone away. it was like something was ready to burst from her chest and it was making it hard for her to concentrate on the matter. It was like something beyond her control was happening to her. But what was the question that she just didn't have the answer to. It had happened ever since she and Ivar were at the gardens. It was like her emotions were at war with one another.

She knew what she was doing was wrong, but why was she feeling like this? it was like her heart was being ripped into pieces that she would never be able to pick up. Was it regret, guilt? It certainly couldn't be anything else because Elsa wasn't feeling anything other than that! She was doing her best to hide it, but the more she tried to, the ore the feeling continued to increase within her suffocating her chest and squeezing her heart.

"_I love you… never forget… that's the truth"_

He had said that to her. Ranger had told her that he loved her. That it was the truth, and that she should always remember. It wasn't like she could that vision had stayed with her ever since she found his body. But here she was hoping against hope that she could have a future with Rangers baby with another man…

The pain seemed to increase in her chest and she bit her lip, trying to hold back a wince. She couldn't show anything. For once (and she couldn't believe that she was thinking about it; she hated thinking about it. she was saying conceal don't feel, but right now it was to hide her discomfort, rather than her powers. It was quite odd actually that her powers weren't reacting to her stress, but she was thankful either way. The last thing she needed was Ivar wondering why there was a trail of ice following them. Elsa would have a hard time explaining that. They were supposed to be having fun weren't they?

Elsa was trying her best, but she didn't know how long until her discomfort would be too much to hide. They weren't going to go far; they had already seen the docks, so maybe the town center was best or the moment. then she would return to the castle and retire for the evening. As it was the baby was taking more of her energy every second; she was getting to tired. Good thing they were already at the town center.

Ivar looked impressed. "I must say Queen Elsa, your town looks most magnificent; even just this center." He looked over to what looked like an abandon building "aha! A forge! I must go and visit there before I leave.

Elsa's eyes widened forge? Did he say forge?

"_My master taught me the ways of blacksmiths and the sword" _

The forge… it was where…. "Wait!" she cried, grabbing Ivar, by his wrist. He glanced at her, confused by her actions.

Elsa shook her head, trying to hold back her tears. She couldn't cry. Not now. She would have time to mourn for the loss of Rangers friends later. She hiccupped, before looking at Ivar "I'm afraid that forge is empty, Prince Ivar. It had been cleaned out not to long ago.

That was true, after burying Erhard and Kayla, Anna herself led the troops to the forge, clearing out anything that had belonged to Erhard and Kayla taking them to the armory where they were made to be weapons for the guards or safe kept for them by Elsa, rather than let there home be ransacked by the city itself.

Ivar looed at Elsa clearly disappointed "may I ask…" he said quietly Elsa shook her head "the people that owned the forge… they were killed about two months ago. I saw it happen. One of my guards…. Killed them in front of me."

Despite not having remembered Rangers role in the events of that day, Elsa could still remember the horror of watching to people being mercilessly murdered, just to break a persons will and spirit. It had been cruel and heartless. Erhard and Kayla were nothing more than innocent bystanders really. There deaths had created a monster, which had led to Rangers death, as well as the deaths of all those who had dared to break him. Sure they had gotten justice (or revenge), but that didn't make the pain go away.

Ivar frowned, wisely not asking what had happened. Instead he pulled away from Elsa, placing a hand on her shoulder "I think… I think it's best if we return to the castle… you look upset."

For once Elsa couldn't agree more. With a nod, she led Ivar back to the castle.

* * *

As soon as Elsa got back into the castle, she bid Ivar good night, before all but running back to her room, slamming the door behind her as she did so. She then ran to the toilet, emptying out even more bile and some of her not so big lunch. She groaned. She really wasn't sure how much more of this she was going to be able to take. And she had seven more months of it too. Uggh. Why in the world did this baby have to take nine months just to get out of her? Not that she was desperate for that to happen of course; she wanted to be able to admire the process, since it was her first baby after all. She stood up and after washing up, Elsa returned to looking out the window where she saw the moon in the distance hovering over her ice castle. With a smile, she glanced down at her stomach. "It's a beautiful night little one." She whispered. "Someday… you be seeing all the glory this world has to offer you." she ran a hand over her stomach "you'll… I'll keep you safe. I promise. " She looked out the window once more

"Forever."

* * *

**Next chapter will deal more with Elsa's baby… and more. Thank you all. **


	42. Distracted

**I know… More chapters. There is still so much to tell! Elsa is having so much trouble with keeping her baby a secret. the fact that she is going through it by herself certainly doesn't help…**

* * *

Elsa woke the next morning, feeling a mixture of depressed and nauseous. Depressed because of the guilt she was feeling ever since yesterday, and nauseous because of course, her baby just couldn't help but remind her of the symptoms that she was feeling. She sighed, getting up from her bed, stretching her muscles before making her way to her bath chambers.

She got out of her nightgown, exposing her naked body, before turning on her bath, making sure to warm the water, before sinking into the lavender scented water. She sighed, feeling so upset with herself. All she wanted was to be happy, and despite the fact that she did kind of but not really like Ivar, she knew that she was only dooming herself. She didn't really know if she loved him. Two days in she didn't know she loved Ranger, heck it wasn't until she months later that she would even admit it! That didn't stop her from feeling as guilty as she did though.

Ivar was nice, but what would he do when he found out that all this was just a lie to protect her baby? He didn't know now of course but after the wedding; after everything, the child paternity would inevitably be revealed by several potential factors. One, it could look like ranger. Two, if it had green or red eyes, something neither Elsa nor Ivar had. Or three having the same fiery abilities that Ranger possessed. Or any combination thereof. Even if Ivar could see the beauty in this baby, could he accept it as his own if the truth were to come out? Elsa certainly hoped so, because all she cared about was giving her baby a safe environment to grow up in; something that neither she nor Ranger had ever had in their childhood. Heck, even an Alliance with Ridgefall would make her feel immensely better about the situation.

Ridgefall was not a warring nation; they just wanted to protect it, just like Elsa did with Arendelle. They only fought in defense, even in defense of their allies when needed. But if insulted by the deceit Elsa was creating; she couldn't be too sure whether or not there would need to be some compensation for it. If Vidar asked for her to marry Ivar anyway, that would be fine, but she would never allow her child to be used as a bartering tool, that is if they happened to ask about it at all. She would not allow anyone to harm her baby in any way.

She was going out with him today, this time to an Opera that Gerda had insisted Elsa go to anyway. It was some play about something; Elsa honestly didn't know, she had stopped paying attention for several reasons. She was tired and her pregnancy symptoms had been acting up, so she had been trying to stay calm, rather than listen to what was going on with Gerda. It was a wonder that Kai and Gerda hadn't even learned about her baby yet. If they did, then they weren't talking about it, which helped Elsa out immensely. She couldn't risk it spreading. She normally wouldn't care if anything bad was said about her; the worst that was said about her so far was that she was a witch (which she quickly got over because she knew full well that she wasn't anything like that, regardless of what people thought about her) maybe illegitimate children weren't the worst possible thing to happen to a person on the throne, but Elsa knew that it wasn't exactly a fond event. People would remember it, and she would be considered a laughing stock of the entire kingdom. Not that she cared whatsoever. She was going to do her best to prevent such a terrible thing from happening. Even if that meant marrying a man she didn't love.

Even though she admitted that there was something between her and Ivar, it just… she wasn't sure that she could ever come to love him the way she had Ranger. Ivar was definitely nice man, and one that was definitely worth marrying. She just wasn't sure he was the one for her.

Political marriages were nothing new; they had happened for ages many of them simply for greater good of the kingdom, or for the belief that the children would be a great asset to the family. Good genes or something like that.

Maybe she would learn to love him eventually. It could happen and it had happened she was sure. But how long until she could realize it let alone admit it? Elsa didn't really know much about love and she knew that she didn't love him now. So what was she going to do? Well for now the answer was as simple as it could be. Lie through he teeth until she knew for certain. And if not, she was going to keep lying until the day she no longer could. If Ivar had a problem with it, then she would either blackmail him or just settle for a little 'accident' with her ice powers. Yeah not exactly queenly, but when her child was at stake, she wasn't going to take any chances..

She rubbed her stomach with a sigh. A little smile made her way to her lips and she began humming. It was a tune that her mother had sung to her when she was a little girl. Even after all these years, she could still remember every note, every segment of the song. It didn't even have words, but to Elsa, it was a masterpiece. It was one of her favorite memories with her mother. Sometimes she would sing it o her when Elsa woke up after having a nightmare. Whenever Idun had entered Elsa's room, she would always leave it after lulling her to sleep with the song. After Elsa had become old enough or when Idun was too busy during the course of the day, she and Adgar had made music boxes for Anna and Elsa with that exact song in mind. Elsa hadn't used it in a while. Maybe tonight… she would use it for the little fetus that was growing inside of her. The thought of it made her heart swell. Elsa patted her stomach "I love you… little one." She said.

She stayed in the water for a while longer simply losing track of time. She just wanted to spend time alone with the life growing inside of her. With a sigh, Elsa leaned back in the water, continuing to hum to her baby. She looked up at the ceiling forgetting about everything. The only thing that mattered to her right now was the fetus.

"My baby" she whispered. Was this how her mother felt when she found out about her? About Anna? This was…. Elsa couldn't describe this, not even to Anna… she had said this was the happiest moment in her life and she meant it. but the fact a life was growing inside of her. She never thought that she would have ever been this happy just spending time looking at her stomach running her hand over her womb like she was. There hadn't been a day so far where she hadn't spent any evening or morning just staring at it. Her stomach was still flat, which would change in about a month or so.

Maybe Ivar would find out, but she didn't care. This was not his choice. This baby was hers and as far as history was concerned. Hers alone.

"I love you,…" she whispered to her baby once more as a tear went down her cheek. It fell down her cheek and fell into the water, evaporating with a slight hiss. It was followed by many more tears as Elsa silently cried tears of joy and tears of sadness.

* * *

Gerda knocked on Elsa's door. It was about time for her to be up this morning. Ivar was already up and ready, though he was politely waiting for the Queen in the dining room, where Elsa should have been. Elsa was never this late before. In fact, she would have usually been in the dining room before anyone else showed up (not counting the servants who set up the table beforehand.) as a matter of fact, Elsa herself was starting to worry Gerda. She looked tired, more tired than usual as of late. There were plenty of times were she found Elsa cured at her desk asleep, her head lying on one hand, while the other was draped across her stomach, as if cradling something. Gerda would have normally found it cute, but the fact she was doing it so often was the part that was worrying her so much. Elsa was always stressing herself out but the number of times that she had found Elsa fast asleep at her desk was steadily increasing… maybe it was the stress of losing Ranger and the potential marriage to Ivar, but then there were many other factors. Elsa was far more fatigued during the day than ever before, one time she even nodded off during a meeting, something she had never done in the past three months she was Queen. In fact her overall behavior was more befitting of Anna during her time being Queen while Elsa was away; even then Anna didn't nod off or take naps (though there were times where it almost looked like she was about too). Elsa took things far more seriously than Anna did, but now it almost looked like she was distracted all the time by something.

Gerda wasn't sure, but she didn't want to see Elsa get hurt. She had been through far too much already as it was. Being self-destructive was never a good thing and Gerda wanted to help Elsa before she did something that not even love was going to be able to fix.

Moments passed and there was no sign of movement, or even the sound of Elsa's voice telling her to come in, like there usually was. Concern immediately bloomed in Gerda's heart, and without waiting for consent, she opened the door. The room was empty, the bed was still unmade as no one had entered the room since Elsa had the night before, yet there was no sign of the queen herself. It was almost as if she vanished. Gerda hadn't seen her come down for breakfast and she had just checke the study. Elsa would have been doing some last minute things in there to be sure if she were up early; the sun had barely risen as of yet; it was just barely fully in the sky as of the last moment she checked. Elsa would have for sure been up long before that was to ever happen; that's how dedicated she was to running her own kingdom and making sure all the affairs were in order.

Which meant that something else was wrong. Gerda didn't like that one bit. She entered the room, closing the door behind her "your majesty?" she called softly. There was no response. Gerda walked to the bed. Clearly Elsa had been here, since her bed was unmade and there was no sign of her anywhere else in the castle. So that meant that she was most likely going to be… her head snapped to the bathroom door, which was closed. Gerda bit her lip and sighed. Was Elsa still taking a bath? What could possibly be so distracting that she was still in a bath after who knew how long? Gerda made her way to the door and knocked lightly "Your majesty?" she called to Elsa inside. She heard a gasp from inside, as if Elsa was deeply surprised. That was the most surprising thing. The idea of Elsa being surprised like that was almost unheard of. What could have she been doing that warranted such a response? "Elsa?" she called once more?

"G-Gerda!" Elsa called from inside "just one minute." There was a shuffle from inside, followed by the sound of dripping water. Elsa was just getting out of the bath? She hadn't even got out of the bath? She must have been in there for ages. Elsa never did that. Sure she enjoyed a good bath as much as anyone, but in the morning? Not so much… not when there was a load of work to be done and no one to do it but Elsa. something was wrong with her. Gerda waited a few more seconds before the door opened, revealing the Queen herself, clad in a bathrobe and her hair still dripping wet. Yep, she had nit even been out of the bath when Gerda had shown up. "Elsa… re you ok?

Even for how Gerda had noticed how Elsa had been looking for the past few weeks, she now looked even worse. There were dark circles under her eyes and her eyes themselves were red, with tearstained streaks running down her face. She looked like she had been crying. Why would Elsa have been crying? There never seemed to be a reason for it before. Was it all the stress that she had been putting herself through "Elsa… are you ok…." She asked, uncertain fear growing in her voice. She didn't want to see Elsa like this. She looked so… broken. Gerda knew that Rangers death had taken its toll on her, but that had been almost two months ago. Sure, Elsa probably wouldn't have gotten over it so soon (even though she did get happier after about a week, but also more confusing than she had ever been), but she seemed to have been getting better with it as of late. But here she was looking like her world had ending "your majesty? Where have you been? Prince Ivar has been worried about you. You have been up here for almost 45 minutes." she said with concern lacing her voice

Elsa's eyes widened. Had she really been in the bath that long? She had been so busy crying that she hadn't even noticed. She must have looked ridiculous. Vidar and Ivar were going to kill her for this. Ok not really but still, they were going to be mad about it.

"T-Tell them I will be down momentarily." She said to Gerda "I'm afraid that I didn't get a good night sleep last night Gerda."

Gerda's eyes widened in understanding "I apologize miss. I will tell them immediately" she said, before leaving the room.

* * *

Elsa couldn't believe what she had just heard. Had she spent that long in the tub just crying and rubbing her stomach? She glanced down at it once more "looks like your distracting me." She said with a laugh "not even born yet and your causing more trouble than your Aunt Anna!" she said to her stomach. Elsa turned to her mirror, taking in her appearance. Yep… she was crying. Or had been; there were still tear stains going down her face. She sighed, making her way to her sink. Before she got ready she was going to need to erase any evidence of this. She washed her face, making sure that she managed to look as normal as possible. She glanced into her mirror smiling. Her face was back to being like its normal self, complete with the smile on her lips and shining blue eyes. There was no evidence that she had been crying whatsoever now. She then returned to her bedroom stripping herself of her bathrobe, letting it fall to the floor, exposing her naked body. With a small smile towards her stomach, she went to her drawer and pulled out undergarments and a bra. She pulled up her underwear and stopped on the bra, noticing that they were beginning to swell again, but not enough to notice, hopefully. She then went to her closet and pulled out an aqua colored dress, slipping it on.

Afterwards, Elsa went back to the bathroom, grabbing her brush and she proceeded to use it on her platinum locks. Unlike Anna who usually had a hard time with her hair, Elsa never did so; it was like it knew that Elsa didn't have the time to worry about her hair. And right now she was grateful for it. She didn't have anytime to go about fixing it; she needed to get back downstairs in order to not look like a complete fool for forgetting about the breakfast. Thankfully there was still plenty of time for the Opera, which wasn't until later today anyway.

She continued to rack her brush through her hair, until she finally felt finished and she placed her brush back on the counter before staring at her appearance. Her hair was beautiful down. But she couldn't wear it like this, or even in her French braid. She was going to have to put it in a bun to look regal. She fixed it up in her normal bun, smiling at herself when she was done. But that smile just as quickly turned into a frown.

She felt so angry. She was trying to please a prince and his father because of this baby and the fact that Anna had called them over accidently. But she didn't have much of a choice. What's done is done and she had to go on… for this baby… that's what mattered to her now. Nothing else. With a sigh, she left the room to go to the dining hall.

* * *

**Anyone else fed up with this yet. Elsa sure seems to be. How long can she go on before her secret is revealed?**


	43. Opera

**This will probably be the final chapter before more plot actually happens. I know some of you might be getting antsy about it, but I really don't want to rush this story, otherwise I risk lowering the quality or outright ruining it. I'm saying this because I don't want to upset you by posting so many chapters where nothing really happens, but the just how I am with my writing style. If I don't go into detail, I feel like I'm just rushing things.**

**In the meantime, enjoy**!

* * *

To say that Ivar and Veidar looked irritated would have been a bigger understatement that Elsa would have thought. Veidar's one eye was clouded and she could see it brimming with annoyance and anger. Not that Elsa could really blame him; she was the one who had made them wait after all. Not that she really cared all that much they were going to have to understand her (totally lying of course) excuse for why she was late and all that because what else were they going to do? They were all expected to go to the opera later today anyway. It wasn't like they were going to be able to go anywhere without offending Elsa, even if she managed to offend them as well.

Ivar on the other hand, looked quite happy to see Elsa; it was like he didn't mind the fact that she happened to be late. He had a gleeful grin and was looking directly at her. Elsa normally would have found it flattering but at the moment all she could think about was about how irritating that smile was. Was Ivar ever upset around her? Shouldn't he be more upset than his father? Even if he was hiding it, Elsa still could find a good reason for him not to show it. She was not doing a very good job as queen at the moment as was highly embarrassed because of it. not that she really cared much. She was more concerned about what the stress of this could do to her pregnancy. She was lucky that Ivar hadn't seen her vomit up her lunch the night before, and she was glad they hadn't stopped for dinner (otherwise he would have seen her symptoms, that much she was sure about.) but over all, the fact that he just didn't seem upset by anything was just plain odd to her.

He stomach grumbled, but it wasn't because she was hungry. No she just had a vaguely uneasy feeling about Ivar now. He seemed like nice guy, but was he 'her guy'? Just the fact that he seemed so calm and happy all the time unnerved her. There wasn't a person alive who could do that right?

Ivar just seemed to perfect, even for her. But she had no choice. This was all for the life that was growing inside her. If she could learn to love him, then that's what she was going to have to do.

With a sigh, Elsa made her way to the table and sat down looking straight at her guests "I apologize for my lateness this morning King Veidar, Prince Ivar. I'm afraid that I have not been feeling like myself since last night." Well that wasn't a complete lie, since she had thrown up due to her pregnancy (not that she was going to tell them that) and she needed to tell them something in order to ease their anger and annoyance so that was going to have to do for now.

Veidar nodded, though her excuse did not seem to go well with him. But once again he could take that patch and punch it in his other eye for all she cared about the issue. "of course your majesty" he said formally, before turning to his son. Ivar looked at his father, than Elsa before nodding, his smile not once leaving his face as he looked at her "you don't have to explain yourself Elsa. I'm sure you had your reasons." He said.

Elsa nodded, accepting their responses, before motioning to a servant to bring them breakfast. Elsa wasn't really all that hungry, but she needed to eat something just so she could keep all the energy before her baby took it all. Gods how was her mother able to go through all of this, let alone twice? Elsa certainly wasn't getting tired of the pregnancy, far from it, but the process was quite tiring especially since she had to hide it for a while longer. Only Anna knew, as well as Kristoff (since he was the one who had figured it out in the first place. The nurse who diagnosed it knew about the baby as well, but Elsa assumed that she was keeping quiet about it, for which Elsa could not be any more grateful.

As soon as she could go around freely with it, she was going to happy. Hiding her baby was such a task, especially since her symptoms were random and growing more frequently. Ivar had better propose soon, or Elsa wasn't sure how long she was going to be able to hide anything else from him. The moment that she no longer had to hide it... heck all of Arendelle was going to celebrate that moment. How could they not; a royal heir was quite the news. The problem was that no one could know about it ffor at least another month, and hiding it was becoming more of a problem. It was just too much work right now as it was. If only she felt easier about the process of the birth. If she was correct, then that one was going to hurt and very much…. What she wouldn't do to be able to not feel that pain. She couldn't feel cold, but she could feel the pain. She was sure that it wasn't going to be pretty. Her stomach churned at the thought. It was like her baby was agreeing with her (not that she knew what the baby's experience was going to be like. She imagined that it was going to be pretty slimy.

But she was going to have to worry about that later. She needed to make conversation with her guests, not worry about something (at least not in front of others.) instead she looked at the two other royals in the room and asked "how was your evening last night?"

And that was the start of a very long and intense conversation.

* * *

Anna was in the gardens with Olaf, just happily watching the clouds go by. After Kristoff had left, Anna found some comfort and solace in Olaf (since he made a good companion any way) and the two just played whatever game that had come to mind with them (they had even built snowman out in the snow. There really wasn't much time for them to do so before spring arrived. Since Kristoff was gone, she needed someone to hang out with while Elsa was busy with her royal 'prince' god Anna was hating just thinking about it. Elsa was going through with this for the right reasons of course, but Anna just wished things didn't have to end up the way that it had. If only Ranger was still alive. He would have been happy to see his child (or at least see it growing in Elsa, since it wasn't born yet. Ana was already excted enough at the idea of Elsa becoming mother as it was! It was so perfect. Elsa would definitely make a good mother, that much Anna was sure of, since she was always so motherly to her (which Anna felt that was grating sometimes, but she knew that Elsa was only looking out for her, so she couldn't blame Elsa. it wasn't like her fears weren't unfounded; Anna knew she was reckless.) Anna couldn't wait to meet her niece or nephew! She was going to have so much fun doting on it and spoiling it as it grew up. no matter what Elsa said of course. After all, Elsa didn't exactly have a stellar childhood and Anna wanted to help Elsa make sure that her niece or nephew didn't go through the same problem. But honestly how could it, with the family that would grow to love it? Powers or not, the child would definitely be shown love by everyone. Elsa, the caring mother. Anna, the spoiling aunt. Kristoff the big softie. Sven, the one to give 'reindeer back 'rides and Olaf who would gladly give the child warm hugs (though Elsa was probably not going to let Olaf hold the infant because of the fact that his cold body might irritate the child and his arms might fall off.) but that was going to be so long from now, and despite normally being impatient about the matter, Anna was unable to celebrate in the way that she would want to; ergo signing and dancing around the halls.

She could just see it now, the pit pattering of little tiny baby feet as she chased a baby down the hall laughing throughout the day. Making snowmen when the baby was able to walk. Cooing at it every chance she got. Teaching it to be like her mother, with a little Anna on the side. She was going to be the best aunt that there ever was. Not even Elsa would be able to match her might (assuming that Elsa would allow Ana to have children in the near future; she still saw Anna as her baby sister of course.) Anna did want children, but even she had to admit eighteen was still too young. Not to mention, she had to admit that twenty one seemed a little young, especially since the pregnancy was obviously unplanned (let alone right, since it was forbidden) but it was better than eighteen, and Elsa was far more … ahem mature than Anna was . Elsa assured Anna as best she could (considering she had little memory of it.) that if she and Ranger did have sex, it was under extraneous circumstances. Not that Anna wanted to know the details. Being told the miracle of life was one thing, actually being told about the event from somebody who experienced it (especially since it was her sister) was something she did not need to do at all.

It was just a very miserable time for everyone, and even playing with Olaf had lost some of the charm that it used to have because of it. Anna was always optimistic of course but the sheer pressure of the situation was making things like this hard to enjoy. Elsa wanted her baby to grow up happy, even if the circumstances with her parents (biological and adoptive) weren't exactly the best. In time, maybe Elsa's baby would understand the sacrifices that its family was taking for it. For that Anna could see a glimmer of light in the future for the baby. That's all she wanted for it. Hope that it would grow in fear or distrust like she Elsa and Ranger had. Which, god willing everything went well for Elsa shouldn't be to much of a problem considering they were royalty and they knew exactly how to deal with powers, which did not involve locking them up for half their life!

That's when Anna realized something. If the child had Elsa's powers, they were certainly going to be easy to control, since Elsa knew exactly how to control her powers (even though Elsa took many years in order to actually control her powers) Elsa's powers were driven by love… love will thaw. But what about fire? Fire… love will extinguish? No, that just didn't seem right. fire was nothing but destruction, pure utter destruction. Once too wild it would destroy everything in its path. Ranger had no one that loved him, considering his twisted past (though Anna did not know the whole story about his master and the events that led up to his life at that point. The only thing that she knew was that his parents had tortured him) so if he had loved anybody, it didn't effect his powers. Either that or his love for Kayla and Erhard were the reason he went crazy. Point was, it didn't seem likely that love had any help in quenching his powers. So if the child did have fire powers like Ranger, They were going to have trouble actually finding out how to control it. since Ranger had never revealed anything about his life or how to control his powers to anyone.

So they were going to have their work cut out for them again. but at last they knew what not to do right?

* * *

Elsa and Ivar walked to the Opera house, dressed as nicely as possible, with Elsa wearing a dark blue dress (which thankfully hid her body more than enhanced it, which worked with hiding her baby), with a matching cloak while Ivar was dressed in a black suit while wearing his cape . they looked like any majestic couple, or so Elsa would suppose. She knew that some people might question why the Queen was in a relationship, but courting was nothing new; it was bound to happen eventually right? As long as everything went smoothly for Elsa, she could care less what people were going to think of her in a relationship. Not to mention, as far as anyone knew, it could just be two royals simply enjoying the nightlife together, there really wasn't anything that romantic about it. Despite the fact that the two were dressed up rather nicely. It wasn't really for anyone o say, if Elsa was to ne honest with. She remembered her father doing the same thing with many female noblewomen who came to Arendelle and nothing ever came up from that (not even an indication that he was having affairs) so maybe there really wasn't too much to worry about from this. She just wanted to have a good timer and not end up getting sick or showing off anything else with her baby process in front of anyone.

Thankfully, nothing on her symptoms was showing (but the dress was a little tight if she was to be honest.) and she was hoping that it would rather stay that way. the opera wasn't going to be that long, so if she could just it for a while longer, then she was going to be safe.

She and Ivar hadn't talked so much, mainly because there wasn't much to talk about. They had more than enough to talk about during breakfast earlier and the two had remained mostly silent ever since then. Not that Elsa minded. It gave her more time to think about what to do for her baby once it was born. It would automatically be named her heir. She was going to paint its room a shade of blue (for its calming affect rather than the potential ice powers that it could have) though the shade would be different depending on if it were a boy or a girl. She was going to make Kai and Gerda its nanny of course, but she would always find time for it, no matter what; heck she would be happy to have her baby interrupt a council meeting just for fun. That would certainly be a very good change from the usual boring meetings that she had. She imagined that even the diplomats she was going to have to deal with would like the idea of a baby running around the room (granted it wouldn't be a regular event since she knew that it would be irritating to some degree) still it would be most satisfying to do.

The opera house wasn't too far way; the show was supposed to be performed by one of the greatest traveling performers that graced Europe. Ivar had stated that he had chosen the opera himself; it apparently got great reviews according to some of the other nobles that had seen it, according to Ivar himself. Not that Elsa herself wanted to be all that impressed before she watched the show. She would rather watch it and form her own opinion. Which would be formed tonight. She didn't know about the plot and Ivar hadn't mentioned it at all, so it would be good to be surprised

The two entered the Opera house and got to their seats, which were quite good, given that they gave a good viewing of the stage and not to close to the stage, nor to far back that they might have struggled to hear anything. Best of all, it was in a private spot, so no one could peek on the Queen or her guest. That was ok by the means of Elsa because she liked having her own privacy, for one reason or another. plus it gave her good means to leave without drawing attention, should she need to.

Elsa turned to look at Ivar, giving him a rather warm smile "this is quite the seating arrangement, Prince Ivar." She told him truthfully. Ivar looked at Elsa and he gave her a grin "of course, your majesty. I couldn't just allow you to have just any seat. It had to be special for you. this is your first time to the Opera I would imagine?" he asked.

Elsa nodded this was her first time to the Opera, given that one, she hadn't had an interest before, and two, she was usually so busy and if she was doing anything on her day off, it was usually hanging out with Anna, which was satisfying in its own right. not that she wasn't welcoming this new experience.

"yes, Prince Ivar." She told him. Ivar just chuckled, giving Elsa another charming smile "please your majesty, just Ivar is fine. We are supposed to be enjoying ourselves after all."

Elsa giggled "of course… Ivar." She really didn't have any reason to argue with him and since she was supposed to get him to marry her, then she might as well try to be comfortable with him, right?

The lights dimmed and the play began, preventing the two from talking any more about the subject. However as they play went on, Elsa felt two things. One her stomach was churning. And two, her eyelids were drooping, but she didn't feel tired. However she was unable to fight off the feeling and a few moments later, she felt herself drift into what could have been sleep or unconciousness.

* * *

**Next chapter will reveal what happened to Elsa, as well as somethings that Elsa wished didn't happen. All things must happen right? Lets just hope nothing bad really happens...**

**Also, for those of you looking for a change of pace, I have uploaded a new Frozen story called "Sisterly love" It is a series of sisterly Elsanna oneshots. Feel free to check it out and leave a request if you like! Till then! **


	44. Secrets revealed

**I hope you enjoy this chapter, because it was a little difficult to do! But thats what you get when you have a story like mine. But either way I hope you guys are having as much fun as I am! Also this chapter was inspired by a review of 'ThatPatheticFanficReader' so thank you!**

* * *

_Elsa was in a room, her own bedroom as a matter of fact. The sun was streaming in through the nearby window, warming her with its rays. She opened her eyes a wide smile on her face. It had been a few days since the best day in her life and she just couldn't be any happier. She turned over to her side staring at the object that was placed a few feet away. It was a crib; in it was her baby. She chuckled lightly, remembering the day she had given birth. Boy did it hurt she would have thought anything like tat wouldn't, couldn't hurt that bad, but it did. She would be glad not to through any of that pain again ever. But it had been worth it once her little bundle of joy was placed in her arms, screaming at the top of the tiny lungs every baby possessed. Her eyes had been shining with tears. Her child was still screaming but it looked so beautiful,. Her child would grow up free of fear. Elsa was going to make sure of that in ant way she could. Gently she pulled the baby closer to her touching its forehead with her own. The baby's cries quieted into little whimpers, breathing lightly. "Oh… your so cute, my little one" she whispered to the child, before kissing it lightly on the forehead, "my little snowflake…" se whispered as she leaned back against the pillow, cradling the child in her arms as she fell back to sleep. _

_That had been such a good day. Elsa carefully uncovered herself and stood up from the bed, going to the crib. The baby was still sleeping, oblivious to its mother watching it. Elsa giggled and squatted down, gently running her hand over the babies cheek "Snowflake." She whispered closing her eyes._

Elsa awoke to someone patting her shoulder. She felt her eyelids flutter open, somewhat annoyed with whoever was interrupting her dream. It had felt so real and so peaceful, something she just felt like she couldn't get while she was awake, with all the things that were going on. It was then she realized something. She had fallen asleep during the play! The lights were still dimmed, enough to provide some lighting to see the stage (which was more that aptly prepared with lighting so people could actually see it) but not so bright as to not allow Elsa to fall back to sleep if she wanted to (which is kind of what she wanted to do. Screw the play she was still tired and she was going to make sure that the person who interrupted her much needed nap was going to see her fist. Which in her sleep-affected daze, was exactly what she did. Her hand clenched into a fist and she punched the person square in the jaw.

Ivar, not expecting such a powerful hit from Elsa (man she hit harder than he would have expected someone of her size to.) groaned as his head snapped back from the force of Elsa's punch. His head hit the back of the other chair next to him, which had no one in it since it was just the two of them in the booth and he slumped slightly dazed, though he wasn't out for the count.

Elsa realizing what she had done, snapped her head up, looking at the slightly wounded (and someone bemused) prince who was currently reaching his hand up to his jaw, trying to rub away the soreness that the punch had given him. Elsa watched for a moment, the shock of her actions sinking in. to be told, she was amused by the sight and felt slightly proud of herself simply because it felt funny to her that she was able to go off and do that. That and he interrupted her wonderful dream. Still she had to play the part so she mustered up a gasp, her hand covering her mouth "Iv-Ivar!" I'm so sorry, you startled me!" she whispered (she didn't want anyone to hear them of course), all the while trying to keep herself from laughing. She couldn't wait to tell Anna this; she was going to think it was hilarious. Heck she was sure that doing something that clumsy is exactly what Anna would have done.

Ivar groaned in response, but looked at Elsa lowering his hand and shook his head. "its alright Elsa, I don't mind if you fell sleep, this part of the play had gotten a bit boring to be honest." I just didn't think you would want to go off and miss the whole play." He told her. " it hasn't been going on that long though, so you didn't miss much, I was about to fall asleep myself" he said with a nervous laugh.

To that, Elsa was happy. She didn't want the only thing she gained from this experience to be that she had fallen asleep from it. She would like to at least watch some of the play just so when Anna asked, she had something to tell her about it. even though she still felt sleepy, she needed to stay awake just so she didn't run the risk of insulting Ivar again. She had done that a few too many times as it was already! So instead Elsa just returned her gaze to the stage, for the first time, trying to focus on the play that was going on far below her. It was amusing to say the least, and even though she knew that it was being performed by one of the greatest traveling performers in Europe (or at least that's how Ivar was able to describe it, not that she was sure that she was able to take his word on it, since he had actually never seen the play before, leading her to wonder if it was his father who had insisted in taking her to this play.) well, at least it wasn't to terrible.

However as Elsa continued to watch the play, she noticed something. She could see a figure, hiding in the shadows. And it seemed to be staring right at her. she felt a chill go through her spine. Was it that her mind was playing tricks on her? or was it something far more dangerous? Before she could even think to turn to Ivar and tell him that they should go, the lights on stage suddenly went out followed by the sound of steel against flesh, resulting in a dying groan. A scream sounded a moment later the lights came back on and on the ground was one of the performers, the sword used to kill him covered in blood, held by a figure dressed in all beige clothing… the bandit that had shot Elsa so long ago. Elsa's shoulder tingled, remembering the pain that had coursed through it when the arrow had been shot through it. Man that had hurt. She stiffened. Why here and now where they attacking? Of all the times that she did not need this to happen (which honestly was never but it want like she had arranged this little get together. Still she had to do something. Ivar was weaponless, though not defenseless she was sure, but there were still all these people in the theater who had just witness one of the bandits murder and innocent bystander who did absolutely nothing. Even if it was just to catch her attention.

Alright, people, unless you want to end up like this guy, I suggest you hand us all your jewelry!"

Elsa could not believe the nerve of this guy. She knew that some people could be desperate, but this was ridiculous. She had to do something, maybe going down to talk to him?

However out of the corner of her eye, she spotted several ore figures dressed in a similar fashion. It looked like the entire gang was here… or what was left of it, since Ranger had blown it up (she had heard the story from Anna). There weren't really all that many, she could make out about ten, maybe less , though it was dark in the theater so she wasn't exactly sure if she could be entirely accurate on the matter. Either way she still needed to not actually cause anyone to die. Especially not her baby, but she couldn't do that by sitting and doing nothing. She stood up, but Ivar grabbed her hand, "Elsa…" Elsa looked at him "I need to do something…" she told him "Ivar did not look happy, and he stood up. "I'm coming with you. I can't let you go off on your own. Elsa ripped her hand from his "no… stay here… I can handle this. They're after everyone; don't make yourself more of a target." She told him and with that she calmly walked down to the stage. Surprisingly, no one moved in to attack her, probably because she was the queen and therefore she was worth more alive than dead.

She knew that this was probably a bad idea, but if she was able to get everyone out of here alive, then this was the best way to go.

Elsa made her way to the bottom of the theater, and all but hopped onto the stage, walking directly to the bandit with the sword in his hand. her heart was pounding with adrenaline running through her veins, but she didn't care. She needed to put her diplomatic skills to good use right now and that's what she was going to do. That and she had an even crazier plan if things went south. Boy, Ranger was sure rubbing off on her that was for sure.

It seemed that even the audience was shocked by the idea of Elsa putting her life in danger, but as Queen it was her duty to protect her citizens. "Leave them alone!" she growled to the bandit leader.

He didn't look all that impressed considering that even with all her power, Elsa was not all that threatening to him. Oh if only he knew. Something inside Elsa was telling her to get ready. If these bandits were going to fight her (well they probably would want to take her alive, didn't mean she was going to go down easy. She could already hear the other bandits closing in on her, coming from behind.

The bandit just placed his sword on his shoulder "thank you for making this easy, Queenie!" he said with a bark of laughter, but don't think just because you're the Queen, I'm going to do what you say." he subtly moved his hand, but Elsa didn't notice.

Well she wasn't the snow Queen for nothing. Before any of the bandits could even think about getting close she turned around and fired a blast of snow at one, knocking him off his feet, and freezing him to the floor in the process. Another tied to rush at her, but Elsa put up a wall, causing him to smack into it with a sicken crack. He fell to the ground unconscious. The final three bandits tried to do the same, but Elsa proceeded to fire more blasts of ice, this time freezing all three in a block of ice.

All of the bandits were incapacitated, or so she had thought.

She failed to notice the leader, who while her back was turned proceeded to inch closer to Elsa his sword held back, ready to slash her from behind. However before he could attempt to attack another barrier of ice blocked him, successfully protecting Elsa.

Elsa turned, hearing the sound of the ice and noticed the bandit on the other side of it. Waving her hand, she fully encased his body in ice, only leaving his head uncovered so he could at least breath. She then looked at him and said "your done…" without another word she turned and strode off the stage where she found Ivar who had run down after her when she started her assault, but by the time he got there ( as he was sneaking to avoid getting detected.), she had already finished everything herself and he was more than impressed. She truly was quite the woman.

However before Elsa could even reach him, she felt an agonizing pain in her stomach, causing her to fall to her knees. The pain was so powerful that it felt like Elsa's stomach was collapsing in on itself. She could vaguely hear the sounds of people gasping and calling her name, but it matter not to her. Her eyes were on her stomach. No… her baby…

A moment later she fell to the ground completely dead to the world.

* * *

Elsa heard voices around her, but they were almost indecipherable; they sound like there was cotton in in ears, preventing her from being able to understand anything that they were saying. The Opera… what had happened? Was… her baby… she tried to let out a moan, barely making a sound. However she felt a hand on her forehead, rubbing a damp cloth on it

With all her strength and will, Elsa opened her eyes, the world awakening to her eyesight. She saw Anna, whose face was ghostly pale, Ivar, who was looking quite shocked and Veidar, who was looking down at her with an almost disgusted look on his face. Ignoring the look of the wise old king, Elsa turned to look at her younger sister.

"Anna… what…

Anna shook her head. "Elsa…. we were worried about you… both of you…"

Elsa took a moment to process what Anna had said. Her eyes widened when she looked at Ivar and Veidar, then at Anna who bit her lip. "Elsa… the doctors told all of us… your baby… its safe." She whispered, her eyes shining with tears.

Elsa sat up in her bed, which felt kind of difficult. She looked at Ivar and Veidar, ignoring the looks on their faces "listen… I didn't intend for it to happen this way. I cant tell you how I got pregnant, I actually don't remember…

"you don't remember that you are pregnant with someone else's child!" Veidar snarled at her "this is a vile attempt to-" he was cut off by the most unlikely of people in the room

"Father!" Ivar said rounding on his father "is this really the time! Reputation be damned I don't care if her majesty is pregnant! All that matters is that her child is safe. Isn't that enough for you!"

Veidar looked at his son, gritting his teeth in anger "son… she invited you here on the pretense to marry her, under the false, inconceivable notion to pass off this child as yours!"

Ivar shook his head "father…" he looked at Elsa with a sad look in his eye "forgive me your majesty, but I must be frank here" he told her before returning his gaze to his father "father, she is a nice girl, but my heart is with another…"

Elsa's eyes widened Ivar was in love with someone else? She certainly wasn't expecting that to happen

Veidar looked at his son with shock "but Ivar!"

"No father. Her heart belongs to another man. I would have gladly married her. If not out of love, but to protect that child she carries, now that I know. But I cannot ask her to love me. It would be a lie for us both."

Elsa felt her heart flutter. That was quite the nice gesture if she did say so herself.

Ivar then looked at Elsa "I apologize for inconveniencing you your majesty, but I assure you, I enjoyed our time together. Now if you'll excuse me, and my father, we will be making arrangements to return home. And your secret is safe with us." He turned his gaze to his father, as if daring him to argue. Veidar sighed, before silently nodding "rest well, your majesty" he said before he and Ivar left the room.

Elsa then looked at Anna and they both knew what the other was thinking. Relief. Elsa looked at her stomach and smiled "your safe little one." She whispered patting her stomach.

Anna giggled "Elsa… you need to get some sleep. You need to rest up after everything that had happened." Elsa nodded, too tired to stay awake. Anna giggled again, then she stood up, watching as Elsa fell back to sleep.

"time for me to go visit an old friend…" she whispered

* * *

Anna dressed in a winter cloak and riding a horse arrived at the north mountain later that night, with the moon shining down on her. Elsa had told her that Ranger had been buried at the bottom of the ravine under the north mountain, so she had made her way there (she had been there before after the events with Marshmallow. she and her horse made their way to the spot where Elsa had told her she had buried Ranger. Sure enough she could see the ice blue tombstone shining in the winters night. She dismounted her horse and walked to the tombstone alone. There was an inscription no doubt put there by Elsa "her lies Ranger… the only man to have warmed my heart" she whispered aloud. She reached inside her cloak and grabbed a pair of flowers she had grabbed from the garden and placed it on top of the grave. The flowers would likely freeze, but it was better that someone place them here, as a memento that someone cared about him.

She smiled " Ranger… I want you to know. I don't care what anyone thought of you. You were a wonderful man and I am glad to have met you. Rest in peace… Brother."

Ranger had been family. It was best that he was remembered as such.

However before Anna could even think of turning around, she felt something hit the back of her head and she fell to the snow, unconscious.

* * *

**Great now Anna is in trouble! is there any time where everyone will be safe?**


	45. The Prodigal Son

**Big surprise for this chapter. This is what i've been gearing up towards for this part of the story, so here it is! I know you wanted it to happen.**

**As for Ivar, I know some of you are disappointed that he is gone, but he has served his purpose for the story. **

* * *

Anna awoke, feeling extremely lightheaded. The last thing she remembered at all was being at Rangers grave, before she just fell to the ground after… her eyes widened as she suddenly remembered that someone had it her just after she had laid flowers on his grave, compounded by the fact that she was currently having the splitting headache that was giving her an even harder time concentrating than she would have liked. Oh she was going to impale the person responsible for doing this to her.

Looking around she saw that she was in a small cave, with a small fire going. With a person facing away from her. Her eyes widened, before her face turned into a scowl. How dare someone kidnap her! She was done being a damsel in distress. And this was only the second time that had ever happened! Although back then she was in more danger of dying than she might be here so there was at least that to consider. Though that did not change the fact that she was still in this situation in the first place!

Anna attempted to get up from the cold ground, but found her legs and arms bound behind her back, preventing her from being able to get to her feet. She grunted, trying to pull the ropes apart, succeeding only in causing a rope burn around her wrists as she vigorously moved them against the tight bounds.

Her grunting did not go unnoticed and the figure turned to face her, giving her a grin. That was the only thing she could see of the figure anyway; the rest of the figures face was covered by a hood. Judging by the body type, the figure was male, and quite intimidating looking. Anna though was not impressed by the muscle and simply wanted to get released so that she could bury this man alive.

"Hello Anna." the hooded man said getting up and going to her. He then bent down extending his hands to her back. He grabbed her and leaned her against the cave wall so Anna was at least in sitting position. Anna wiggled furiously giving the kidnapper a glare "don't even think about touching me again!" She screamed at him. She reared her head back, but the man slapped a hand over her mouth startling her. Was he going to hurt her? Violate her? Anna shivered with disgust. Of all the things to go off and happen, that was not something that she was hoping for! "Anna!" the man screamed, "calm down! I need you to calm down! I'm not here to hurt you. I just needed to make sure you wouldn't run off before I had a chance to explain."

Anna flinched staring into the darkness of the man's face. his voice… why did it sound so familiar? Like she had heard it before in the past? It was sending shivers down her spine, like a ghost that was trying to haunt her. slowly she nodded, partially because she was kind of afraid that if he didn't, he would hurt her.

The man removed his gloved hand from Anna's mouth, reaching for his hood. He pulled it down ever so slowly. As he did, Anna felt her jaw drop. No. It wasn't possible. She had to be dreaming right now.

* * *

Elsa woke up, immediately aware something was wrong. Her heart was being extremely sat, and she felt a sense of sorry. She turned her head to the seat where Anna had been sitting last night. It was empty. Why was it empty? She abruptly sat up and pulled the covers off of herself, standing up from the bed with haste. She needed to get to Anna as fast as possible, if just to make sure she was all right.

Elsa exited her room (which was a guest room because they felt it would be improper for the king and prince to enter the Queens private bedroom.) and made her way to Anna's bedchambers. She all but slammed the door open her eyes widening with shock as she saw the untouched bed. Anna hadn't even been in the room at all. There was no sign of her whatsoever. That could only mean one thing. She had never returned to he bed after Elsa had fallen asleep.

She had to be here. Elsa slammed the door shut and all but ran to the castle foyer, hoping to find someone who would at least know where Anna was.

* * *

His skin was tanned, darkened like he had been in the sun. His eyes were a fiery red that blazed like a wild fire. His hair was dark like the night when there were no stars out. It was a face that had haunted her sister's nightmares.

It was Ranger staring back at her without a single hint of remorse in his face. His grin was wide, showing off his perfectly white teeth. The grin that was so cocky and made Elsa want to rip her hair out every time something snarky came out of it. Even though Anna had never once found a reason to be angry with Ranger, she couldn't help but feel a sense of rage and betrayal at him at the moment.

She just continued to stare at him completely lost for words. What was she supposed to say to him? It wasn't like she knew what to say to someone who came back from the dead? She had just been at his grave for crying out loud. Elsa had told her she found his frozen shattered body lying in the snow. There was… how in the world? he shouldn't have been able to survive that, let alone the fall that would have killed him as soon as he had landed. What type of madness was this?

That was it. Anna had to be going mad. There was no other explanation for the situation that she was in right now. She was dreaming, anything. Anything was better than facing the truth in the eye. And she meant that quite literally.

Ranger was staring at her, very much alive.

She mouth worked furiously, trying to come up with something to say about this and she was doing a very good job looking like a complete slack jawed idiot doing so right now. But she was in shock so that was understandable.

Ranger just chuckled finding Anna's lack of cohesiveness mildly amusing "I take it you've never seen a dead body before?" he asked with a sly grin. In all honesty though he knew that toying with Anna was more or less a bad idea because she was a little more volatile in her actions, but he just couldn't resist the idea. It was far too tempting since her face looked like it had been carved out of a comedic scene. So he might as well toy with her (though not too much, he didn't want to cause her to have a mental breakdown, since Elsa was likely to have one just by looking at him. not that he was intending to go see her. he wasn't even intending to see Anna. he had just been visiting his own grave (a very surreal experience he might as well add) when he suddenly spotted Anna in the distance. Afraid that she might have spotted him, he knocked her out and ragged her to the cave, just so he could explain himself

That and he needed to see her to see how Elsa was doing. Not a day went by when he didn't miss her. Each and every heartbeat was just pure agony in his veins.

Anna shut her mouth, trying to calm down. Naturally of course being Anna, it failed miserably. She wasn't sure what to feel at the moment. The words shocked and confused were there, but there was also rage and anger. And boy when Anna was angry, you needed to run yesterday. Even then she was going to catch you. She struggled against her bonds "Ranger you bastard!" she screamed wishing that she could strangle her friend to death.

Ranger sighed and shook his head. "Oh Anna…" he said, moving his hands to her face, gripping her cheeks softly "I need you to remain calm. Please. I can explain everything if you just calm down.

"Forget it, you ran off on her! You don't get to be sorry Ranger. There is nothing you could say that will change my mind!" Anna spat at him, giving the man a venom filled glare. How dare he even try to come up with an excuse after everything he had done. He 'dies,' but then he apparently survives and just proceeds to run off doing who knows what while her sister was pregnant with his child? He deserved to be dead as far as Anna was concerned. !

Ranger frowned, biting his lip. He looked away from Anna and to her surprise, muttered "I know. I don't deserve your forgiveness. Or hers." To her surprise, she saw a tear go done his cheek as he said it. Anna had never seen or heard him cry, not even when she had asked him about his home (though she had run off before she could, so there was that.

"But then again, when have I ever asked for forgiveness. Its beyond a demon like me." His voice came out bitter and hateful. Like a poison that slapped Anna right in the face. But she couldn't really blame him. That's how he always was. Underneath his calm exterior that Ranger had was a man in both pain and a man willing to kill for vengeance. She had seen both sides of it. Even now he was still the same person underneath all that rage.

Anna shook her head "Ranger… what's happened to you…"

Ranger looked back at Anna "I can't really explain it to you Anna, I don't really know what happened myself. One minute I'm dead, the next I'm alive again" he stopped allowing the information to sink into Anna

She gave him a skeptical look; even he knew how stupid it sounded, but it was really the only explanation that he had. Well there was a longer explanation, but that was going to take even longer to explain than he would want to at the moment. Even then there was no guarantee, for however smart Anna was (which Ranger knew was true, despite her clumsy attitude) he knew that she probably wouldn't believe him when he presented her with that information. He didn't believe it when he lived it!

But now was not the time for playing twenty questions. Elsa was bound to be wondering where Anna was at this very moment and he didn't have time to waste. He went to Anna's hands and removed the bonds, which were still pretty tight. After a few moments he moved the bonds and then went to her feet, removing the bonds there.

"There we go…" he told her before standing up and offering her his hand. Anna, ever so grateful, took it and stood up. She then stretched her muscles. They were sore after lying in the same position for so long, even if they weren't aware of it for most of the time.

"Thanks Ranger" she told him…. before she reared her head back and head butted Ranger right in the face. Unfortunately, she only succeeded in getting a headache. Ranger didn't even flinch from the blow. Yeesh, Anna forgot how resilient to damage Ranger was. She needed to find some other way to torture him without hurting herself in the process. Groaning Anna's hand flew to her forehead and she rubbed it, hoping to ease the pain that was in her head "god damn it Ranger I know that you have fire powers, but why is your head as hard as a rock!" she screamed at him. Ranger just sighed and without any warning picked Anna up and swung her over his shoulder. Anna let out a "woah" of surprise.

Ranger!" she screamed beating his cloak with her fists "put me down!" she screamed at him. she couldn't believe this. first he abducted her (ok not really but still it was embaressing enough) now she was basically being carried all the way back to Arendelle looking like this? She might not care much for her title, but even Anna knew what was and wasn't appropriate.

"Let me think about that…." Ranger said mockingly to her. She could feel his grin. If only he knew how badly things were going to end for him by the time all of this was over. He was going to be begging fir mercy when she was done with him. "Nope. Besides princess, I've got a very efficient way of getting us back to Arrendelle. One that does not require us to travel on foot. That will take far too long and in this cold weather, you wouldn't last long into the night."

Ana wasn't sure she wanted to find out about this "efficient way of getting back to Arendelle. Too bad she was going to find out anyway.

Anna growled, "what about the horse I came in on?" she snapped.

"I cooked it and ate it while you were sleeping." Ranger told her as he began walking towards the entrance to the cave.

Anna's eyes widened and she flailed in Rangers grip "what!" she cried out angrily at him. how could he have just eaten an entire horse. Was he that insane?

Oh that's right… this was Ranger they were talking about. He would eat a horse. No. he would just turn it into a pile of ash long before he would go off to consider it. That and Anna knew that he wasn't that crazy.

Ranger laughed as he exited the cave "got you didn't I?" he asked her, a slight hint of amusement

Anna huffed, going limp in his back "no… not funny, Ranger…" she groaned at him. he was alive for only a few minutes as far as Anna knew or bothered to care, but he was even more cocky and arrogant that when she saw him last. She had absolutely no idea how Elsa fell in love with him, even though she did like Ranger. Well either way, it was good to have him back, even though she was not at all happy about her current situation.

The next thing Anna knew, she was being lifted into the sky as Ranger suddenly started flying, fire bursting from him feet. She gasped her body flailing once again." wait Ranger… I… I… Stop!" she knew that he could do this from having seen him do it before, but that did not mean she wanted to fly!

Ranger grinned oh this was going to be fun. He hadn't had any fun with Anna in quite few months, so why not take advantage of it. He suddenly picked up speed flying higher, before throwing Anna into the air.

"Ranger!" Anna screamed into the cold night air. She was falling. Falling straight to the ground what was Ranger trying to do? Trying to scare her was one thing, but this was just straight up murder! She screeched loudly for a few seconds, before she landed in Rangers waiting arms. Her arms instinctively wrapped around Rangers neck and she buried her face into his shoulder. She was going to kill him later, but first things first she needed to calm down her erratic heartbeat. Ranger just laughed and he continued his flight back to Arendelle at a much calmer pace. Unknown to Ranger, Anna was smiling as the duo flew of to Arendelle in record speed.

* * *

Elsa was practically terrified at the moment. The guards were searching all over Arendelle, heck they were even trekking up the north mountain, but there was still no sign of Anna! She should have been back by now. According to the gate master, Anna had left not long after noontime. She knew that it took hours to get to the North Mountain and such, but a horse would at least be able to shave a couple hours off. It was almost midnight and yet there was still no sign of her. She should have been back around 10 at least. But that had been hours ago and Elsa was starting to get ready to rip out her hair!

That was it. She wasn't going to wait any more. She was going to go out there and retrieve her sister her self. She might be the Queen of an entire nation, but she was not going to just stand in her castle while her sister was possibly hurt or even worse at the north mountain. Elsa walked out of her study and slammed the door shut, going straight to the front gates of the castle.

Elsa looked up at the sky, where the north mountain was. The sky was dark and there was a brilliant red star shining in the distance. Wait a second. Red star? Why in the world would there be a red star? Stars were white, not…

* * *

It was then she realized something else. The star was coming closer. Heading right towards her in fact. A second later something crashed down a few feet from her causing a small explosion of heat. Elsa shielded her eyes coughing slightly. That was some landing.

But what could have caused such an event? She hesitantly looked over her arm. And her jaw dropped… before she fell to the ice, dead to the world.

* * *

**What were you expecting Ivar to be evil? that would have just turned him into Hans. If I was going to use a character like that i might as well have just used Hans! But if I had turned Ivar into Hans, it would have been unoriginal. A villain needs to be unique and thats what Elias was. He wasn't a suave charming man. He was a prideful leader who was willing to do whatever it took to achieve his goal. Granted he wanted to be king like Hans, but he just wanted it because he lusted over Elsa, not the power of the crown. **

**Also, is now a good time to tell you, I'm thinking of a sequel?**


	46. Explanation

**Time for some explanations. if anyone is wondering how Ranger survived, well its revealed in this chapter. **

**Silent Reader, you weren't actually that far off! Ranger did die, but he sacrificed himself so that Elsa could have a better life without him. In my book a self sacrifice is a form of true love, showing selflessness. Granted how he did it wasn't the best way, but it was the only way!**

* * *

Ranger carried Elsa off to bed and was currently staring at her unconscious form as she slumbered feeling quite terrible about what he had done. Not just the fact he had pretty much shocked her into unconsciousness, but every day he had been away from her. It had been torture, a pain much deeper than even the whip that had scarred his back had ever hit. He just felt like it was the best thing to do. Better to disappear and find a way to live, maybe find a way to control his powers at a much better level than he currently could.

He still didn't know how he was able to survive; all he knew was that he had. One minute he was saying goodbye to Elsa, the next he was falling to his death. That's when the funny things started to happen. He was falling to his death, but when he tried to unleash his flames they didn't work as well as they normally did. He had chalked it up to being weak after the fight and sure enough, his powers had returned to there full strength later on. It was still enough to save his life, but not nearly as powerful as they normally were. However, he was very ashamed of what had happened and hadn't used his powers much after that. he could still fight though since he wasn't defenseless (as if anyone could be defenseless when they at least knew how to wield a sword), and he just left Arendelle after that. It had been a painful landing but at least he had managed to survive.

However that was not the end of the story obviously and there was so much he had to tell Elsa. He knew that he had hurt her. He knew that running away, while he was making her believe that he was dead was a far crueler crime than anything he had ever done in his life. He knew after that he could never return to Arendelle. She would never forgive him. She would hate him forever as much as he hated himself. He still hadn't forgiven himself! Every day he wanted to return to her, to the only woman that he had ever loved, but he found it impossible because of the simple fact that he knew that she would never forgive him. So he left once more in a self imposed exile, to spare them booth the scrutiny of her being in love with a monster. After everything he had done, would it still be worth it? Would Elsa still be able to love him? He tried to kill her! Well more or less he had made her kill him, but the over all point was that he was the one who had attacked her! He had become the very thing, the very monster his parents had believed him to be! How could anyone forgive him after that?

Anna had… even though she had once again attempted to cause him physical harm, even though that hadn't worked at all. Anna was definitely a funny girl though, that was for sure. Not that he didn't deserve it. he was certain that Elsa would be more than willing to freeze his heart again simply because she was angry. Granted she wasn't a spiteful person, but still, hell have no fury like a woman scorned. He would never admit it aloud, but Elsa absolutely terrified him sometimes. A he had never really seen her angry before, but it would be safe to assume that the second she woke up, he was going to wish that he had stayed away.

He loved her, that was never going to change. But he did have to explain himself once she woke up.

Which judging by her constantly moving and shifting in her sleep, meant that she was about to wake up. Any moment deciding to speed up the process he leaned over her and pressed his lips to hers.

* * *

Elsa could feel someone's lips against her own sending warm shivers down her spine. She knew these lips. They were rough and chapped, but she knew these lips. But it was impossible. He was dead. She had seen him die. She had seen his body, broken into sever pieces beyond repair. How could he be kissing her lips. How could she e responding with so much familiar passion?

She opened her eyes and indeed she saw a familiar face (she couldn't really remember Rangers face, but some instinct inside her told her it was him) that was currently kissing her lips, showing her the love she had longed for several months. Her eyes fluttered closed and she allowed herself to continue the kiss. So many emotions were running through her, none the least of which was unbridled fury, but at the moment, she was enjoying herself too much to care. Her hands came to rest on Rangers cheeks and she began kissing him back, her tongue gliding over his lips. Hi mouth opened and she assaulted his tongue with hers dancing in a fiery waltz Ranger brought his leg of Elsa, all but falling on top of her and joining her in the bed (though he was over the blanket.) and gently laid himself on top of her. The two remained in their passionate embrace, lost in the passion lust and love, until Elsa suddenly put of her hands on Rangers chest and pushed hard, throwing him off the bed. Ranger flew backwards land on the edge of the bed, but unfortunately proceeded to fall backwards and land on the floor.

"ow… I deserved that." he groaned, just lying there o the floor. He might as just lay there until Elsa decided she had enough in the way of torturing him.

Elsa sat up, her face morphing into the most angry look that she had ever managed to accomplish in her life. Never before had she been so angry, not even when Anna had eaten her entire secret chocolate stash. No this was by far the one thing no body would ever want to see. Hell have no fury like a woman scorned.

Elsa threw the covers off of her bed and stood up going over to her fallen lover. Summoning all her strength she grabbed him by the scuff of his neck and pulled him up to meet her eye to eye.

"Ranger…." She growled. His face was the exact way Anna had described it would be. Fiery red eyes, black hair. she could remember his scent; it ticked the insides of her memories', despite being blurred thanks the trolls.

Ranger not knowing this of course, decided that a little bit of sarcasm was in order "that's my name Elsa. What don't tell me you forgot about me in the short few months we were apart." He said giving her a very wide grin. His smile fell however when Elsa's glare turned into a heavy glower. She pushed him away, turning her back to him while placing her arms around her stomach and silently began to cry as tears fell down her face.

"You've… you've hurt me Ranger…" she stuttered, her words broken by the sobs that racked her body. She clenched her fist, feeling her powers surge throughout her body ass she tried to keep calm and remain in control. But it was becoming increasingly impossible with the headache she was developing from this. It was made no better by the fact that she could hear Ranger walk up to her and place a hand on her shoulder "Elsa…

That was all it took. Elsa snapped and turned around her hand flying towards his face. She smacked his cheek hard, causing his head to snap to the side rom the force of the blow.

He breathed heavily, looking away from her, before his head returned to its normal position and his eyes bored directly into hers

"Elsa…" he stopped shaking his head "I wanted… I wanted to come back, but I… but I…" he stopped once again, frowning "it's a very long story." He told her. How was he supposed to explain this? It wasn't like he knew what had happened. Could Elsa help him with that? Maybe, but what explanation could she come up with that would be able to explain how he was still alive. Even if she did, there was no guarantee that she wasn't going to kill him for running away from her.

Elsa folder her arms under her chest giving him a harsh glare "then uncomplicated it!" she snapped at him, her eyes blazing with anger. He sighed once again. How was he supposed to tell her everything without her finding a way to kill him in the process? Anything he could say could really just make Elsa angrier than she already was and she was scaring him at the moment. Well, if he was to die, he might as well just let her know how hard it had been for him to stay away from her without it being possible to not break his heart. Every moment away from her had been complete agony and even now, with her and him together in the same room, it just continued to break his heart even more, knowing he had to explain himself. "Well…"

_He was falling. That was the first thing he noticed. Why was he falling? In fact why was he even aware of anything at all? He had been frozen by Elsa hadn't he? So why was he still conscious, let alone alive?_

_His eyes snapped open… what a second, alive! He looked up (or down, considering he was upside down and saw the rapidly approaching ground. He reacted immediately, his body bursting into flames, enough to stop his fall and flip him up right. Slowly he made his way down the ravine._

_Ranger landed on the bottom of the cliff, completely thawed. He fell to his knees exhausted from the exertion. He panted heavily before looking up at where he had once been. The cliff seemed to have been broken off. He looked around seeing a large amount of debris, no doubt the debris form the cliff._

_He sighed. He needed to leave. He needed to leave Arendelle for good, but he could just leave without leaving some evidence of his death behind. Not wanted to make a scene in case Elsa was looking down (though it was hard to see at all due to the large distance between the top and bottom of the ravine) he began walking, trying to find a way out of the ravine and back up to the ice castle. He needed some ice._

"Wait a second" Elsa said "you survived…. and did what?" Elsa cried shocked that Ranger had gone so far just to deceive her. It seemed so out of character (then again he had hidden his powers from her, so maybe she should have been so shocked at the idea) she was doing her best to keep herself from interrupting but her curiosity had peaked a little too much there and she just had to say something before Ranger continued to tell the story

Ranger sighed "Elsa, do you want to hear the story, or not?" he groaned. This was a very long story and Elsa continually disrupting him was not going to make it any easier to explain it to her.

Elsa shut her mouth, motioning for Ranger to continue his story.

_Ranger managed to walk all the way up the mountain after several long hours. It was well into the night now and he was exhausted, made no better by the fact that his body was still sore. Thankfully however he had managed to reach his goal. There was a lot of ice around her, no doubt created by Elsa at some point. He went up to one and using his flames carved out a very large block of ice._

_Using his powers, he solely began to carve the ice, until t resumed the way he looked after he had been after he was frozen. It was quite the surreal experience, but it had to be done. Elsa could come looking for him at any moment and he couldn't risk being discovered. Like he had said, it was better to die here and now, than to live as a monster._

_When he was finished, Ranger carried the body to the ice palace._

"Wait… didn't Marshmallow try and kill you?" Elsa asked, knowing full well that Marshmallow hated anyone that wasn't her or Anna Kristoff and Olaf. Ranger shrugged "hitting him in the chest with a fire ball seemed to calm him down" he told her. "But yes… when I got there he was not happy."

_ Ranger made his way to Elsa's ice castle, but he didn't enter it. Instead he walked around it going to the place where he and Elsa had last spoken to one another. A tear escaped his eye. He loved Elsa, but he had no other choice. He had to do this. For her. It had always been for here. With a burst of strength, he threw the icicle off the mountain, letting it fall into the ravine below._

_However when he turned around he found Marshmallow staring down at him with angry non existent eyes "YOU!" he boomed angrily, bring his face down to Rangers. Ranger just grinned "hello big guy." He said, before punching Marshmallow straight in the eye. The giant snowman roared in pain clutching the spot where his eye would be he stumble around blindly, Ranger used his powers to slice off Marshmallows feet, sending the snowman tumbling to the ground face first. He fell in front of Ranger a dazed and hurt look on his face._

_Ranger scowled "listen sunshine. You tell Elsa about any of this and I will melt you. Is that clear. If she asks, I'm down there. Dead!" Marshmallow nodded. "Good."_

_Happy about that, Ranger walked away. He had to get some money for a few days. He had a boat to catch_

Ok now Elsa was ready to throw a fit. Ranger had carved an ice cube to look like him, threw it off of a cliff, threatened one of her creations and proceeded to go… where the hell did he go? If he had been running around for a few days before leaving and avoiding Arendelle where in the world had he… her eyes widened "you didn't…"

_Ranger, wearing a winter cloak to cover his face (in case he ran into anyone familiar out here, though that was unlikely) walked into the wilderness. After wandering around the mountains, he had managed to a find a quaint little place called wandering Oakens trading post and sauna. They were kind e enough to give him a job so that he could earn a little money for his travels. (Since all his stuff was back at the castle which was a place that he just could not go back to) he was supposed to be gathering firewood today. After today, he was going to leave and never come back. Then he could go on with his life._

_However as he was walking he heard growling in the distance, followed by a worried voice. A familiar worried voice…. His eyes widened "Elsa!" he screamed as he took off running in the direction that he had heard the voice come from._

Elsa gasped recalling the cloaked figure from before "it was you…" she whispered. Ranger nodded "I couldn't just leave you there, Elsa, so I took you back to the trading post and told them not to tell you that it was me…" after that, I went to the docks and left."

Elsa shook her head "but where did you go?" she asked him "what made you come back?"

Ranger chuckled at that one. "Well Elsa… I ended up in a small kingdom called Ridgefall." His eyes hardened "you know the place from where your Fiancé came from!" his voice rose in decibels and he was almost screaming at her. Elsa flinched at that. "ohh.." she said, rubbing her arm "about that…" she said "that was Anna, actually…

"Pray tell what would make Anna get you a fiancée only three months after I was dead? You have no idea how angry I was about that, Elsa. When I heard that you were getting married… I had to come back here and stop you…" he said gritting his teeth in barely concealed anger and jealously. Elsa would have laughed, but she had to tell him the whole truth.

Elsa sighed "Ranger there is a reason for that…" she gulped this was going to be a very complicated situation. She had to explain so much to him and she wasn't sure that he was going to like it. How was she going to be able to tell him that she was pregnant? It was hard enough for her to accept it.

Ranger just looked at her, expecting an answer. Elsa gave another sigh "Ranger, do you remember the night we…" she blushed red running a hand over her stomach, where he baby… their baby was still growing inside of her. He nodded. Of course he was able to remember that day. He had been there after all. It had been one of the happiest moments of his life.

"Well…" Elsa began. You see Ranger…." She stopped looking for a moment. Was this how her mother felt when trying to talk about her pregnancy? Gathering her courage, she looked at Ranger "Ranger… I'm pregnant." She said giving him a smile

Ranger was silent for a moment. He just stared at Elsa for a moment, before he grabbed Elsa by her waist and pulled her closer. Elsa let out a squeak, but it was quickly silenced by his lips. Her hand flew around Rangers neck and she kissed him back passionately.

When they broke apart he was smiling "I love you Elsa… I love both of you."

* * *

**Well Ranger seems happy… or is he? Not much is left of this story, but there are a few things to wrap up! Until then!**


	47. Terrified

**May I admit something? I'm not totally happy with Rangers characterization… I envisioned him as a hotheaded smug rebel as a sort of foil to Elsa, who I see as humble and modest. However the more I wrote him I feel like he became a sarcastic brooding antihero. I guess it works given the backstory I crafted for him, and maybe it works as character development, but still… **

**Lets see what Ranger thinks about fatherhood!**

* * *

Ranger sat on the roof of the castle having climbed out of his bedroom window and up the castle to do so. It had been two weeks since he had been reunited with Elsa and found out that she was pregnant (which was shocking,) but he was happy nonetheless. At least that's what he felt on the outside. On the inside though he was screaming. And not in joy, no, but in absolute terror. He was scared and he had every reason to be. His mind had been racing with every possibility, every certainty, everything that could go wrong.

He knew that Elsa would make a great mother. She was kind, caring loving wise and selfless. Those he knew were not just the qualities of a great mother, but a great person. She was raised to be a kind queen, but she was a kind person nonetheless. Her parents, what little he knew about them, had taught her well.

The question was would he make a good father? His own father had been cruel and merciless, torturing him every day until he was arrested. Two years later his father continued that cruel streak by dragging him out of the town himself and stabbing him right in the chest in the hopes of leaving him to bleed to death! His own father wanted to be the one to see him die, to see the light leave his eyes. Sure no one knew of their relationship with one another (Ranger had been hidden in his room when he was still a child; he assumed that his parents told everyone he was dead), but still. That was the only example of fatherhood he had to go with. Not counting his time with his master.

His master had been more of a father than his biological father ever was.

He cared for him, fed him when he was weak and taught him things that he had never been shown before. He was tough, but he wasn't heartless. Why his master had taken him in he never knew, for he never asked. His wife. Oh bless that woman his wife was every bit a mother as anyone could hope to be.

Pity he was the one who had to kill her.

Ranger gritted his teeth. That's what scared him most of all. Everyone who had ever shown him the slightest bit of kindness. His master and his wife. The whole village that had taken him in. Kayla. Erhard. Each and every one of them, gone. The word echoed in his head.

Gone.

He was scared. What if he harmed Elsa? Or even worse their child? He knew that he would never under any circumstances hurt them on purpose; he couldn't even bare to think like that. But he had lost control and killed his masters wife and everyone else in the village because he watched one of the few people who had ever cared for him die right in front of his eyes. He had always been called a monster, but he never felt like it until then. He hadn't realized what he had done until after he had calmed down.

He could still smell the acrid scent of burning flesh. He could still see the corpse that littered the ground, lying among destroyed buildings, with the flams producing smoke, clouding the area with ash. After that day he started running. He ran and he never stopped leaving everything behind.

It was then that Ranger had truly been born. His weak dependent former self was no more. He grew up lonely, needing no one else, relying only on himself. With nothing but the armor on his back, his own sword, a dagger and a few scavenged gold coins, he had made his way to the edge of Italian territory and went straight into France, then Germany then Denmark and finally to Arendelle.

Ranger….

He always believed that hiding the pain was the better thing to do. He grew up, developing a cocky arrogant attitude, made no better by the short temper that he had at times. Maybe it was the lack of proper guidance that he obviously didn't have. He did have to rely on his own judgment most of the time (and considering that he didn't trust people due to his mistreatment there left very little room for him to develop bonds with people or even bother to ask any of them for help) most of the time that led to situations where he stole from people to survive (he had to make a living somehow), though he never took more than what he needed. It wasn't until after he began using his smithing skills that he started making more of an honest living (though he did resort to stealing food whenever he was hungry and low on spare coins, that is if he wasn't hunting.)

How long had it been since his birth name was ever spoken? He never even thought out it. He never referred to himself as such anymore due to the trauma he had suffered. Disassociation, he believed it was called.

But just how long could he go on living a lie? Elsa had asked him once if Ranger was even his name, and of course he told her it wasn't. But there were more pressing problems for them to deal with right now. One after his return, the council had been divided on his place in the kingdom on one had, half the council was glad and wanted his return as the queens personal guard at once. The other side however e believed he was a menace and should be banished from Arendelle.

Elsa of course, knowing exactly what that meant for Ranger, vetoed the idea immediately, saying that despite his killing of Elias and the others, his devotion to her (which was meant as devotion to serving her, but Ranger knew exactly what she meant) was more than worth his killing of the guards.

Even worse, despite the fact that she was about 3 months along now (with it being early March right now) Elsa had yet to reveal her pregnancy as well as the fact that Ranger was the father of said child. They were planning on doing it together soon because Elsa was soon going to be showing and even if she was able to hide it for now, soon they would have no choice but to reveal it otherwise they would start question why their queen was wearing really heavy outfits during the summer season.

He knew that if anything was going to make then angry it was that Elsa was pregnant. Reputation was everything in the kingdom; Elsa needed to be taken seriously as a queen both domestically and foreign. To be not even a year into her reign as queen and to be pregnant by her personal guard instead of a royal figure when not even married. it would be seen as disgustingly irresponsible. He didn't care what happened to him over this, but Elsa… he didn't want anything to happen to her or their child. They both had enough suffering in their lives. Their child should grow to be free of that!

He gritted his teeth, his fist blazing with flames for a brief moment. He didn't care. He knew he would never be granted the title of king, but in all honesty, he didn't care. Screw being the king of Arendelle, he just wanted to remain by Elsa's side and help raise their child, even if he had no idea what he was doing. If that meant just being her guard (Elsa would certainly never marry someone else because of this, doing so would be both cruel and disturbing) then he could do it, but Elsa and he were going to fight tooth and nail if they had to. They were a couple and going to be parents. To treat her suitor and lover as anything but what he was would be prejudicial and honestly be treason, since Elsa was the Queen. Then that left the problem that he had been wondering about ever since Elsa had told him about the possibility of him becoming the king.

King Ranger certainly wouldn't exactly be the best to refer to himself as, since he knew 'Ranger' sounded silly, but he had been twelve and technically it was his master's title as a matter of fact. At least it had been when he was in the army. He had been a scout an most of the townspeople referred to him by his title 'Ranger' so basically in honor of his fallen master, Ranger had effectively took his name as the man was ultimately everything Ranger had hoped to embody. Strength, courage, compassion, leadership, and cunning. All traits that Ranger at the time lacked, being a fearful soul, constantly on the edge of his own sanity and was threatening to go through an emotional breakdown even as he was shown kindness for the first time in his life when Ranger took him in. it took many months for him to even stop flinching at the sound of anyone approaching him and even longer for him to accept any affection from others without screaming in fear.

Even then he never revealed the trauma that he had gone through. His master never asked and never did anyone else. It was obvious to any adult what had happened to him; he was tortured. Rather than ask questions about it, his master instead tried to discipline him, giving him a conduit to channel his pain into strength by training him in the ways of the soldier. It worked, changing Rangers mentality from fearful to focus. He became skilled in his own right and had actually been planning to join the army after his eighteenth birthday. Instead he became a drifter realizing that he couldn't protect anyone due to the dangerous nature of his powers.

What if his child had the powers he hated so? It wasn't that Ranger was scared of the idea; it was a distinct possibility that the child could have his or Elsa's powers. If it was Elsa, then he felt like he had nothing to worry about. As dangerous as Elsa's were, his was far worse. If it was both, then that seemed a little over powering. Still that seemed unlikely. If it did happen like that then he and Elsa were going to have to do their best to handle it.

His reverie was broken by the sound of thunder in the distance. Great, so on top of the fact that he was having trouble adjusting to the changes in his life, mother nature decided to make it worse? Well he had better get inside. With a sigh, he jumped off of the roof, landed on the balcony to his room and went inside just as the rain began to fall.

* * *

Not feeling like being in his room, Ranger exited the room and began a very long trek to nowhere. After becoming reacquainted with the castle, Ranger spent most of his free time doing one of two things. Being with Elsa whenever they both could manage some alone time (since they were still trying to keep their relationship a secret from everyone except who knew about the baby.) and two wandering the halls. After spending so much time on the run again, it felt good to wander throughout the halls again. it wasn't quite as good as training, but it served the purpose of relaxing him whenever he was stressed, which he still was right now anyway.

Ranger made his way down the hall going in no real direction. It wasn't like he had a plan in mind at the moment. Elsa was still in a meeting and Anna was with Kristoff. Olaf… Olaf was just too happy for him right now and a major distraction at that one. Ranger had a bit of a love hate relationship with the snowman. He was so innocent to the degree that Ranger wished he could have been as happy as Olaf was when he was a child. Then of course the warm hugs thing. That snowman would be great with kids, but Ranger just found it irritating. Not that he actually hated the snowman. It was just… he still wasn't used to the whole family dynamic that was going on around him, considering that even with all the things Elsa and Anna had, they still had the one thing he never had. A family.

Even Kristoff who was raised by trolls (Ranger still had a hard time finding that to be easy to believe) had a sense of camaraderie and relaxation that Ranger had never known. It was still so unsettling. Despite his time with Elsa, there were many instances where Ranger still would have expected an attack of some sort. Guess his masters training was still in effect.

Elsa, of course noticed this and did her best to help, but even before the events that led to his powers being revealed, despite how relaxed he could be, Ranger still felt so on edge. It amazed her that he could be so unsettled and still have that much control over his powers. Any time she was unnerved, ice was appearing sat her feet.

Ranger had good control over his emotions. That was the only reason that he was able to keep the flames inside him from spiraling out of his control. That was how he focused hos power, through all the hate and rage he felt at the world for his mistreatment. But ever since Elsa had appeared in his life, he didn't want to feel hate to use his powers. He wanted to feel… something different. He wanted to know what it felt like to use his powers to defend someone, not for vengeance or anger. Unfortunately that was the only way he knew how to use his powers.

As he continued walking he heard voices. Not really wanting to talk with anyone right now, Ranger opened the nearest door and jumped inside shutting the door behind him. He stayed there a moment waiting until the voices subsided.

He let out a sigh, before turning around. To his surprise, he was in Elsa's study. Everything screamed Elsa in here, from the origination to the simple decorations that littered the room. The only surprise about the whole thing was a portrait. It showed a man with ginger hair and a mustache and a young woman with dark hair who he almost mistook for Elsa.

"She looks just like her." he whispered aloud. They were dressed in royal outfits and they were smiling fondly as if nothing could dampen their spirits. They were her parents.

"Hmm" he huffed. He walked closer to the portrait looking up at them. He felt so small compared to them. They must have been good people. They had raised Elsa to be the woman that she was, for however long they had.

Would they have liked him? Would they have shunned him? Would they have hated the fact he stole their daughters heart? Would they have accepted him as a son? These questioned burned in him. Everyone here seemed to like him, but he never knew what Elsa's parents would have thought of him. a simple soldier marrying the daughter that was just… too good for him?

Ranger stared out the window, where the storm continued to rage outside.

" Forgive me…" he whispered before going to the window. He opened it and jumped out. He needed to go see them.

* * *

Ranger walked in the storm, ignoring the stinging cold of the rain. He had never been much for water, considering that it left him wet, but he had a job to do. He needed to go see them. After all the turmoil he had gone through after getting the forgiveness of his friends, he had to go and see them. Talk to them.

He knew where they were. Anna had told him one day when he had spotted the graves in the distance during a walk around the castle. Naturally he was sad about the situation, but only because Elsa and Anna didn't deserve that.

He never counted on being happy. He never counted on living a life with someone that he loved. How could he possibly be worthy of Elsa? of being the one for her? he knew that she loved him and he loved her. but how could he be sure she wasn't making a mistake?

Ranger made his way behind the castle where sure enough he found the large graves with lettering that spelled out the names of the former monarchs.

Ranger stood tall, looking at the grave, but he could already feel tears leek out of his eyes

"I never knew you. I wont know you. And I'm afraid. I hurt her… it doesn't mean I don't care…. I don't want to let her down… I just wants what's best for her… you can understand that right?!" he said to the graves "I know I was never meant for her… she deserves someone who can give her all the love she has ever deserved… "

He fell to his knees; finally feeling overwhelmed "I know that I love her… and our child… I will love that child with all my heart…" he chocked "I want to spend the rest of my life with her… please… tell me its going to be alright…" he begged the graves

"Maybe they already have" a new voice said. Ranger turned around, seeing Elsa dressed in a cloak to shield her from the rain. He could see tears in her eyes. She had heard everything "maybe they sent you… to me…" she whispered.

Ranger stood up staring at Elsa for a moment, before he all but ran to her and held her close. The two just stood in the rain holding on to each other, feeling all the hope and pain the other was feeling.

The future was uncertain… but Elsa and Ranger were going to be together to see it all through….

* * *

**Well that was emotional… I hope… There may be one more chapter before the finale part (actually two parts possibly) because I feel we need a chapter where Elsa finally reveals her baby to Arendelle. After that… (static)**


	48. Revelation

**WindrissQueen I hope you are happy with this chapter! this chapter has a few threads to the sequel, so be on the look out!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

The sun was rising that morning in Elsa's room lighting the sky a brilliant mix of orange red and pink. In the room itself however, there were two occupants still in the clutches of sleep having only managed to fall asleep recently after a very long talk after Elsa had managed to convince Ranger that they needed to talk about it; Elsa herself had held it back long enough. She needed to tell the council about them. Everything that had happened. That she was in love with Ranger, that she was pregnant by him, that she wanted to marry him (Ranger chocked on that one because he hadn't really thought of the idea as of yet). They both knew the pitfalls that they were going to have to go through, but neither one of them cared. Elsa had already told them that she didn't want a prince whose only function was to give her an heir to the throne; she wanted to spend the rest of her life with the man she loved and the children that they were going to bring in the world. That man was currently sleeping right besides her holding her in a loving embrace. Elsa believed in marrying for love and regardless of what her council thought of Ranger, she wasn't going to let that stop her from doing as she pleased; this was hardly an abuse of her power, since she wasn't forcing Ranger to marry her in any manner. The council just hated him because of the party; an act that he had every right to be angry over! She didn't agree with his methods of course, but he had watched good friends die because of the actions of one man who wanted Elsa her self. She would have been devastated if it had been Anna. It wasn't a stretch to say that if something happened to anyone Elsa loved, she wouldn't do the same. Her powers had almost caused the same devastation before.

So today, Elsa wasn't going to let anything hold her back. If her council disagreed with her, then she would just tell them that she was a person who was capable of making her own decisions. She above all trusted Ranger more than anyone else would. She wasn't going to let him suffer any longer. So what if he wasn't royalty? Just because you are royalty, it doesn't mean that you are the right choice for someone romantically. He had proved to her that he loved her when he came back to her (since she really couldn't remember anything else, even if she did have Anna tell her about what had happened between them in the past.) so with all the power she had, she was going to make sure that no other royal suitor would come searching for her hand because she was going to freeze anyone that would even attempt to try it. Her heart was given to Ranger long ago; no one else would have the power to steal it.

Elsa's eyes fluttered open. She had a very peaceful night (at least after she managed to convince Ranger that she wanted him by her side during the night, despite the fact that it was really risky, should someone see her guard enter her room.) and was very happy.

She had a council meeting today, but she wasn't too concerned about it. Her council was there to advise her, not dictate every action of her life. The only problem was that she knew that they were going to be very unhappy. Turning away a potential prince to marry because she fell in love and was pregnant by her own guard? Forget that he was a killer; this was going to make them absolutely livid. Even the ones that agreed that Ranger deserved more than hatred might not totally agree with her. but what's done is done and they were going to have to get used to it, regardless.

Her eyes clouded lightly though, when she remembered the events of last night. She had actually been in a meeting when he happened to look out the window and see Ranger walking out towards her parent's graves in the distance. Obviously she had been concerned and all but dismissed the council entirely running outside in order to meet with him.

She had heard every word that he had spoken about their relationship. About how he felt he was not the right one for her. He was afraid. She was too, but she knew that he was the one for her.

She shifted slightly to look at him. His eyes were closed, but he was smiling. She held back a groan. Had he been awake this whole time? She chuckled lightly and pecked his lips. "Good morning Ranger" she said, before leaning down to kiss him again. Ranger's hands came to rest at her hips as he kissed her back. He had done this before in the past two weeks but after being away from her for so long, it was as if he couldn't get enough of it. Not that either one of them was complaining about it, mind you.

Elsa's tongue glided across his lips, begging for entrance. He obliged and their tongues fought for dominance, Elsa's hands glided down to Rangers bare chest, running her hands over his muscles, moaning as he began to rub her hips. Alas she knew that now was not the time to be getting lost in her pleasure. She broke the kiss, slightly annoyed but they both knew they had a job to do. Elsa crawled off of Ranger and went to her closet, stripping herself of her nightgown. (she had no problem being naked in front of Ranger of course) before donning under garments and a dress.

Ranger just watched her. It amazed him how she could be so calm. He was screaming (at least on the inside) shaking his head, he got off the bed and walked to the door "I'll see you in the council chambers" he whispered, before exiting the room.

Elsa frowned this was going to be quite the morning.

* * *

Elsa walked into the council room, Ranger not far behind her. She opened the door and walked in where her council was waiting for her. They too were confused by Elsa's sudden departure the day before. They were even more surprised to see her guard walk in with her, dressed for combat, no less. Why would her guard be in here? Usually Ranger would be out training. There was no need for him to be here. Plus given the focused almost angry look he was wearing, it wasn't hard to say that he was intimidating some of them.

Elsa sat down in her chair, Ranger standing beside her. Elsa herself could feel her palms start to get sweaty and resisted the urge to look behind her or reach for Rangers hand. She needed to remain calm and composed, showing off confidence. Now was not the time for her to lose her cool. Granted, she was about to release a bombshell of news to her council and she had no idea how it was going to play out, but she didn't have much of a choice. This needed to be done. She had a point to prove as well. Placing her hands in her lap and sitting up straight, Elsa cleared her throat and took a deep breath. "Councilmen." She greeted them, her voice filled with respect and authority "I must apologize for events that unfolded yesterday." The council said nothing waiting for the Queen to continue. "Before we start our day, I must address some issues that have come to light. Specifically about the matter of a royal heir" at this the council immediately perked up. Ivar had left and the last time this had been spoken about was when Elsa had all but refused the idea of marriage entirely! So what had changed now?

Elsa took another deep breath. Beside her Ranger tensed. He knew that this wasn't even the worst part, but still, he was not looking forward to the council's reaction.

"You see councilmen… I am pregnant" Elsa said, a slight edge to her voice, as if daring someone to argue with her.

The room went deathly silent. Ranger winced. This was not going to go well. he could already feel tensions slipping. It was only a matter of time before-

The council erupted into roars, almost indecipherable, but both Elsa and Ranger could tell that they were outraged, and with good reason. Elsa had just told them something that not everyone would want to hear. But they honestly had no time to waste here. Elsa needed to tell them everything (even though it would most likely end badly, at least for someone here). Ranger slammed his fist on the table, causing everyone to jump, less from the force and more from the fire than engulfed his hand "ENOUGH!" he screamed above the roaring of the council "the Queen…" he growled "is pregnant… I think we can understand how… but yelling at her is not going to answer anyone's question about who what where or when this happened. So kindly… SHUT UP!"

Elsa stared at Ranger, gulping slightly. She had to admit that had scared even her. She could feel a patch of ice at her feet. She really needed to get Ranger to help her out with this, because even though she wasn't scared of him, the fact that something like that caused her to slip was a tad embarrassing for her. Quickly though she looked back at the council and sighed "councilmen… I understand that some of you are upset. But know that this decision was a spur of the moment event, but it was fully consensual and the father is someone that I fully trust… and love… " He voiced ended on an almost dreaming whisper and her hand reached towards her stomach and rubbed it gently.

This did not go unnoticed by councilmen. a young woman with dark hair and blue eyes. Her name was Karen. She was a new councilwoman; having joined around the time Elsa had become queen, in order for her to establish herself and aide the Queen and her heirs in the future

And unknown to anyone… she was Kayla's cousin. Her mother and father, both deceased had been assistants to the King and Queen (Erhard worked for the family business, while his brother met and married Karen's mother while still young and they both began working in the castle. After Karen's birth, King Adgar stated that he would like her to join the council when she was of age, in order to learn and assist Elsa when needed, as to give a fresh pair of eyes to the new monarch), and had joined them on their fatal journey. She thought she had lost everything, but she still had Kayla. She remembered as a child, their parents would come together and the two girls would play. Karen was very quiet about her family and personal life, wanting to protect her remaining family. Until the day her good friend Elias murdered her in front of her eyes. She couldn't get her revenge on him. Or at all. Until she heard what the man standing behind the queen said once he went into a rampage

_Karen watched as Tyrone ran towards the recently revealed monster in the room. Ranger… that's what his name was she believed. He was standing beside the queen, until about five seconds ago. Karen had tried to stop Elias running through the crowd, but by the time she got to the front of the crowd all she saw was the body of her cousin and uncle. She fell to her knees, staring at the bodies, ignoring the screaming that was heard, coming from Ranger. Her family… it was gone… Rage built up inside her. her gaze snapped to Elias who was cowering behind his guards. She stood up intending to go to him and strangling him, but the sound of an angry filled voice growing a familiar name stopped her. She turned to look at the source. Ranger._

_"Erhard…" he growled, turning to Tyrone._

_Tyrone fell backwards, trying to crawl away from Ranger. Ranger was giving him a look of pure and utter hatred. 'Please!" Tyrone begged, "don't kill me! I was just following orders."_

_Ranger looked at him. "Mercy?" he growled. He reached down and grabbed Tyrone by his throat "Did Erhard and Kayla beg for mercy before you killed them!" he screamed angrily _

_Karen watched as in a rage, Ranger murdered Tyrone. He knew?! How did he know her cousin and uncle?! Why would he know them? He had only been in town for maybe a few weeks!_

That of course had been before he ran off, before he could get any answers from him and she later learned of his death. Now here he was standing not to far from her. She clenched her fist… Ranger was going to pay for getting her family murdered. However before she could even think about strangling him, Elsa's voice snapped her out of her stupor

"And that's not all…" she said, "the father… is my personal guard… Ranger."

The room went silent once more, all of them staring at Ranger. Ranger for his part just looked back at them "it is true… Queen Elsa and I… we fell in love. And we consummated that love one night."

Needless to say, everyone was more than a little upset by this.

"No!" Karen screamed her voice shaking the room as she slammed her fist on the table, giving Ranger a heated glare; here eyes blazing with barely concealed anger.

She pointed a finger at him, her arm shaking she was so mad. "You are nothing… a nobody! What makes you think you are worthy!" she growled, "to be with the Queen! To be our King?" she gritted her teeth "it takes more than a child to worm your way into the throne…." She stopped, struggling to find the right words "Demon!"

The room went deathly still. Elsa could feel Rangers rage rising, and the room itself seemed to heat up. She gulped. Karen had said the magic word. There was no way to stop Ranger now. She knew that he wasn't going to go overboard, but still, she had definitely struck a very deep nerve.

Ranger slammed his fist on the table "if you think I am unworthy to be your king, then you are right. I'm not meant to be the king. I'm just a blacksmith and a solider. I know nothing of the politics of running a kingdom. But listen to me very carefully…

I am not a demon! I don't care who you are you know nothing about me girl! You have no right to talk to me like that, councilmember or not! My powers are in the same boat as the Queens. Yet she has done nothing to warrant this kingdoms hatred, great freeze or not. Neither have I. yes I killed people, more times than I care to count. But don't ever call me a demon. You know nothing of demons!" his hand sparked dangerously, wanting nothing more than to burn something. Karen flinched, half expecting an attack. She might have taken things to far. But she wasn't going to back down just because Ranger had the ability to burn her. She was not going to be weak!

Ranger huffed, anger still coursing through his veins. He needed to remain calm… he couldn't lose control. This was about the child, not him. He couldn't let Elsa's work go to waste because of his temper.

Elsa, seeing this debate going on for hours, cleared her throat and placed a hand on Rangers arm. Ranger glanced at her and sighed, taking a step back. Elsa nodded slightly before turning back to her council "this meeting is not about my guards position as King nor about the events that led to my pregnancy! This is about the child itself! This child is my heir, this kingdoms future. You are free to voice your opinions, but insult my suitor again and I will have you thrown out of this room! is that understood!" She yelled, her body shaking with rage Elsa knew that one was a little rough, but she had no time to listen to a pointless argument about Rangers position they had already discussed that before. That was then this is now. While Elsa was certainly going to marry Ranger (as she would hope to) the issue right now was getting her council to be on board with her child. After that, she could resolve any remaining issues with Ranger separately.

Everyone went silent once more, seeing that the Queen was really close to doing just that.

Instead, they began to compromise, exploring ways to handle this situation a little more… humanly, without any screaming involved.

The debating went on for hours, well into the day. In the end, most of the council was in an agreement that the baby, regardless of its conception, was indeed the heir of Arendelle, and not an illegitimate child (though that didn't stop Elsa from sensing the overall disappointment in the room and she knew why.) By the end of the debate, Elsa and Ranger were at the very least satisfied. Ranger's potential kingship would be called into question and Elsa would have to announce the baby to the citizens of Arendelle.

Elsa herself though, was very happy. Despite not everyone on the council being on board with her pregnancy, it was her child, not there's. She and Ranger were going to give it a bright future. Nothing was going to stop them.

* * *

**OK, the baby thing is out of the way, so I think its time to move on to the end. The final two chapters will be up soon as well as a teaser for the sequel! get ****ready!**


	49. Perfect day

**The penultimate chapter. get you hats ready folks because we have a celebration today! Frozen fever! get your headphones ready to play the song as you read this chapter! i was going to use the song, but it would have come out disjointed, so unless the line was really needed I didn't use it. **

**Now there is one thing to note. Ranger does not do much in this chapter, because I feel he would either burn the snowgies, causing more damage than he would want, or just be… there. So he is off doing is own thing for most of the chapter. that being said there is something about him in this chapter. **

**read on!**

* * *

To say that Elsa was irritated was a complete understatement. No, make that the biggest understatement of the century. 4 months after the fiasco with Ranger things seemed to be going nowhere, but wide! Yes wide because she stopped going up when she was 18! Dear god was it possible for a person to get so big. Here she was 7 months pregnant as wide as a house, stressing over a birthday cake!

She had so much help with the planning even from Ranger, who seemed almost distant from the subject unless he was actually doing something to help. As a matter of fact he was nowhere in sight at the moment having left to 'take care of something'. Elsa didn't mind, Ranger had been stressing over several things, one of which was Elsa's pregnancy. He didn't treat her as if she was made of glass, but it seemed the closer to the due date she got, the more concerned he became. However this morning, while she as asleep he left the room, leaving her a note stating he would be back in time for Anna's party.

"Here we go…" she said she waved her hand creating a sculpture of Anna wearing her casual dress, however she immediately dismissed the idea "so lonely" and instead create one of the two them in their coronation dress smiling happily. "Stiff" she groaned and waved her hand. The next one was of the two of them in the position where Anna was frozen and she was grieving "I cant do that!" she gasped and immediately created another one, this time of them skating. Elsa still wasn't satisfied "come on Elsa, you can do this… this is for Anna!" she said, but it wasn't helping to motivate her

Meanwhile Kristoff was putting up the birthday sign looked at her and said, "Relax! It looks great!" He said, placing a mop in one of the buckets he had on Sven's head.

Elsa shook her head. "I just want everything to be perfect!" Elsa muttered

Kristoff laughed. Speaking of perfect, check this out!" Elsa turned, quick difficult, since she was pregnant and saw the sign. It was multicolored and screamed happiness. She gave a weak smile. She just wanted this to be perfect. She walked up to Kristoff, "Kristoff are you sure I can leave you in charge?" she said rubbing off a but off paint from his cheek before going to a table and fixing up some flowers

"I don't want anything to happen to this courtyard!"

Kristoff laughed, "Come on, what's the worst that could happen, it looks great. Elsa was about to reply when she heard a crunching noise "Olaf what are you doing. Olaf turned around, blue frosting on his mouth "not eating cake!" he denied. Elsa smiled going over to Olaf and bending slightly to meet his eyes. "Its an ice cream cake!" Olaf said he loved ice cream. Elsa smiled "and it's for Anna." Elsa said, before walking away

"And it's for Anna. Olaf whispered, when no one was looking he took the piece of cake and placed it back on the cake. Elsa jolted when she heard the sound of the clock tower "oh it time!" (Its time… for what?" Olaf said) she said almost tripping over her feet. She began walking towards the castle doors, but turned around so she could see her friends "you sure you got this, she asked Kristoff who nodded "and don't let anyone in until we are ready" she said waving her hands freezing the fountain. Kristoff smiled "I' won't! "And don't touch anything" "I'm just going to stand here. (I'm going for a walk" Olaf said) she said, before running inside the castle. "And keep an eye on that cake!" she called, before closing the door behind her.

Kristoff looked at Sven "she thinks you're an idiot!" he said in Svens voice. Kristoff laughed and began to walk away "well clearly she's wrong!" he said, before accidently hitting the cake, almost causing it to fall over. Thankfully he was able to save it. Sven looked at him "what?" its fine."

Olaf on the other hand, sat at the table and looked at the sign "I can't read… or spell."

* * *

Meanwhile, far outside of Arendelle, Ranger was in a cave deep in the mountain holding onto a rock. He had managed to take several of these rocks carved from the wall itself. But that was the easy part. The hardest part was turning it into a precious stone. He covered the rock with both hands using his powers to heat up the rock crushing it. He could feel it smooth under his touch see the colors blazing in the fire… just a little more…

He stopped. And took his hand away. In his hand was a brilliant turquoise colored gem, the same as Anna's eyes. He smiled. This was her birthday present, but he hadn't found time yet to make it. He had been practicing using his powers for a while now, but this was the only time he had managed to get it right. And this was the only place where he could find privacy.

Today was to be the perfect day for Anna.

If only he wasn't so miserable….

He pushed the thought aside, placing the gem on the floor. One down, a few more to go.

Anna, being Anna was still sleeping. But she was completely unaware of the fact her sister was crouched on the floor next to her (well about as crouched as one would be when pregnant.)

Elsa poked her head nest to Anna's "pstt…Anna…" she whispered Anna just snored before mumbling "yeah?" Elsa clasped her hand together "happy birthday!" she whispered.

Anna moaned "to you…" in a singsong voice, getting lost in the overall tune, unaware that it was her birthday. Elsa laughed, standing up and rubbing Anna's back. Its your birthday."

"To me!" Anna moaned "its my birthday!" Elsa giggled swiping the covers off of Anna just as she realized what she said. The red head sat up, grinning wildly. Its my birthday!" she asked looking at Elsa. Elsa smiled. "Today is going to be perfect" she told Anna. She took Anna's hands and pulled her off the bed, handing her sister her dress. Anna took it and sprinted to her divider where she changed her cloths. Elsa on the other hand walked beside it, before she suddenly let out a sneeze.

Anna hearing the sneeze exited her divider, noticing Elsa' rubbing her nose. She also looked ill. Elsa denied having a cold waving her hand closer to some flowers changing her ice dress into a summer green ice dress, before doing the same with Anna's, decorating her dress with flowers. Elsa then pulled Anna out of the room, following some strings. They came to a suit of Armor where Elsa revealed a bracelet. Anna gasped as Elsa slipped it on her

* * *

Meanwhile Kristoff Sven and Olaf were napping when they noticed tiny little snowman walking by and jumping into the punch. Kristoff gasped and reached for them, but only succeeded in getting drenched in punch when he tipped it over. Je groaned he was so going to get fired for this. He promised that nothing would happen to the courtyard and he already ruined the punch.

Forget the punch, he needed to go after the snowgies!

* * *

Elsa led Anna to a closet where Anna opened it and inside was a castle replica, complete with an Olaf alarm. She then led Anna outside where some flowers were waiting for her

Olaf hugged the snowman tightly. "borthers, he called before running after more of them.

* * *

Elsa led Anna down to the floor on a scaffolding. Where there was a sandwich, before leading her inside where there was a family portrait featuring Elsa Anna Kristoff Ranger Olaf and Sven Olaf was in Elsa's arms, while she and Anna were siting on Sven, while Kristoff was next to Anna, leaning on Sven's neck. Ranger was in between Anna and Elsa his smirk present while his arms were folded. After that the two sisters went on a bike ride down the hall, just as Anna originally wanted to, (Anna ran into a scarf as well, Elsa having to reach back and gently pull it off her face. the two got to the staircase Elsa letting out sneeze after sneeze as they got to the bottom

* * *

kristoff and Sven ran after the snowgies, but before they knew it, more burst from in from the castle doors. Seeing the cake they smiled.

Ranger smiled, his work completed. In his hand lay a turquoise colored necklace, specially made for Anna. But now his work here was done. He needed to return to Arendelle and get to the courtyard before Elsa and Anna returned. That didn't leave him much time. Slipping his present into his pocket, Ranger burst into flames, before taking off into the sky.

As he flew a tear fell down his eye…

Elsa led Anna to a boat, letting out another sneeze as she went along. Anna, concerned, grabbed the fishing lure that Elsa was holding before pulling her away, intending fort her to get some rest. If not for her sake than for her babies. as they walked however, Elsa pulled away, before dragging Anna to a cart where there was a snow globe. She let out another sneeze, before taking Anna to a cloak stand, run by none other than Oaken himself. Thankfully for Elsa (though she would never admit it, there was a sauna door too. She opened it and let out some steam. She breathed heavily, feeling the steam relive her briefly of her clogged nostrils, which allowed her to breath a little easier.

She was very relieved, as her cold was starting to get the better of her, but she wasn't going to admit it. She needed to make this day perfect for Anna. Besides, she still had enough energy, despite her pregnancy and cold slowly sapping it away.

Before Elsa could close the door however, Oaken himself emerged from the steam, offering Elsa a cold remedy. Elsa refused walking away, but Anna politely took it, following her sister.

Elsa led Anna to a choir of singing kids, while Anna all the while continued to eat her sandwich. However at the end, Elsa let out another sneeze, and led Anna away, for there was still more to do.

* * *

Kristoff Sven and Olaf were having their hands fully, running around trying to catch the speedy snowgies. Granted Olaf was hugging them, while Kristoff was trying to get them as far away as possible. Noticing some of them were by the cake, he grabbed Olaf's head and threw it like a bowling ball, knocking them away. However he failed to notice more of them on the birthday sign and they broke it, sending the flyers everywhere. Olaf noticing this quickly grabbed the letters "I can fix it" he cried. More of the snowgies, noticing a spoon on the ground attempted to use it like a catapult, sending one of them flying towards the cake Kristoff acting quickly, Grabbed the now empty juice bowl and used it to catch snowgie after snowgie. He let out a smile before hearing Olafs happy voice. "All fixed!" he cried. Kristoff looked up, expecting everything to be all right, before his smile dropped, almost dropping the bowl in the process "Dry banana hippy hat!" he said incredulously.

Sven just continued to run after the snowgie. In the end he crashed into a snow sculpture, accidently freezing his tongue to it.

* * *

Meanwhile, as the sun was starting to set, Elsa led Anna to the final stop on their trip. It was an old clock tower. Elsa wanted to watch the sunset with Anna today. then they could go back to the party, where everything should be (as long as Kriustoff didn't mess things up like she hoped he wouldn't. not that she didn't trust him, she just wanted everything to be perfect.

Anna on the other hand was less enthused. As the day went on, she noticed that Elsa was getting weaker and more lethargic. If it wasn't because of the cold, it was because the baby was doing the work. Now she was getting worried more for her sisters baby than for Elsa, because if anything happened to Elsa, it would hurt the baby.

"Now we climb!" Elsa said j her words slurred slightly because of her cold.

Anna followed, trying to keep all of her stuff together—seriously Elsa had gone completely overboard with how much she was trying to give Anna. That and she was more concerned that Elsa was going to hurt herself.

"Elsa!" she called "that's too much you have to rest!" she said pleading with Elsa.

Elsa turned to her, her eyes almost closed and her cheeks red from exhaustion. No.. She could keep going. She needed to make today perfect for Anna. Just this one last thing and then they could go home where Elsa could get much needed rest. Not that she was ever going to admit that.

"But we need to get to our birthday chills…" she huffed, before realizing what she had said, "I mean trills, she called happily trying to cover up her mistake."

* * *

Meanwhile, high in the sky Ranger could just see Arendelle in the distance. It was a very long trip, but he had made it! Now he just needed to get back to the castle before Elsa got Anna there and he would be able to give his little sister (yes he saw Anna as a sister) her final present. He could feel it in his pocket. He was so proud of it.

As he continued to fly closer however, his smile turned into a very deep frown. Today was the perfect day. Everyone was happy for Anna. After all, this was the very first time in so many years that she got to celebrate with Elsa (they hadn't celebrated Elsa's birthday because of what had happened to him.) but despite this, he felt so much… anguish.

No he needed to be happy. For the sake of Anna's birthday he needed to be strong and happy!

* * *

Elsa opened the door to the clock tower leading Anna inside, making her way up the steps, before leaning against the railing.

Anna on the other hand noticed the steps lead a long way up. Concern immediately blossomed in her heart. She did not want Elsa to fall. Screw her birthday at this point it was about Elsa, not her! "Elsa…" she began, but Elsa interrupted her, standing up straight "what?" I'm fine!" she called, before making her way back up the steps. Anna followed.

* * *

Kristoff in an attempt to keep the cake safe was running around the courtyard with it, but unfortunately he ran into the snowgies, sending the cake flying, but luckily olaf caught it (or rather, his body did, and he ran with it with the snowgies where his head would be. but he accidently ran into Sven (who was dragging the ice sculpture with him.) who managed to get it on top of his head, but the snowgies grabbed the cake once again, running on top of a ladder. Kristoff tried to grab

* * *

Elsa and Anna made there way to the top of the tower where Elsa in her current state walked to the edge of the floor, twirling around the railing, and unfortunately, tripped over her own two feet. Anna noticing the danger dropped everything and reached for Elsa, grabbing her hand just as she was about to fall. She pulled Elsa way and the two fell to her knees "Elsa, look at you… you have a fever!" she said placing her hand on Elsa's forehead. "You're burning up." Elsa finally admitted she had a cold.

* * *

Anna led Elsa back to the castle gates, Elsa holding her stomach and feeling miserable. She wanted today to be the perfect day, but all she did was manage to ruin it. "I'm sorry Anna, I just wanted to give you one perfect birthday… but I ruined it. She said, her voice very somber. "Again…"

Anna stopped Elsa, getting in front of her grabbing her shoulders and looking her in the eye "you didn't ruin anything." She pushed the doors open. Elsa's eyes widened inside the courtyard was the castle staff Olaf Sven and Kristoff, who was standing on top of hunddreds of snowgies, fighting over the cake. However, as the doors opened everyone stopped looking t the sisters. Quickly gathering their composure, they stopped and yelled, "surprise!"

Anna turned around hearing the surprise and unlike Elsa who was shocked let out a "Wow!" Elsa after getting over her shock muttered, "wow."

As Kristoff and Sven tried to balance the cake on top of the snowgies, Olaf some kids and some of the snowgies, picked Anna up and carried her closer to the cake. Elsa smiled, letting out another sneeze. Her eyes widened however when she noticed the snowgies around her. They came from her?! She frowned as one looked up at her. Great she was a snow mother.

The kids dropped Anna in front of the snowgie pile, and she looked up at Kristoff Happy birthday!" she said, before sliding down getting on his knees "I love you baby!"

Anna looked at him, lost for words, before the snowgies stole the cake again, this time bringing it to Sven, who cut the cake into slices. The cake was then served to everyone.

Elsa, who got beside Anna, then smiled "perfect day!" she said. Anna grabbed Elsa 's hand and intended to drag her to her room "ok to bed with you." she said. But before she could move, Elsa pulled back, going towards a large horn "wait, all that's left is for the queen to blow to bugle horn!" she said.

"No!" Anna cried, realizing what could happen as a result. Too late, Elsa sneezed into the horn, sending a giant snowball flying into the air. Who knows where it would end up?

Everyone laughed. Until they heard a new voice. "Nice Elsa. Every one looked up to se Ranger, giving Elsa and Anna a grin as he landed next to them. He then reached into his pocket and took out the necklace. "Happy birthday Anna."

Anna gasped, marveling at the beauty of the necklace. Before taking it from Rangers hand and slipping it on her neck. Squealing she gave Ranger a hug. He stiffened, but hugged back.

Elsa smiled. Her boyfriend had made it. She frowned however when she noticed that a tear was running down his face.

Ranger pilled back before glancing at Elsa. "Elsa. Are you ok?" he asked. Anna chuckled "she has a cold… I'm taking her to bed. Without another word, Anna grabbed Elsa and took her inside the castle.

Later, after tucking Elsa into bed and wrapping her up in a jacket, Anna was sitting beside her, feeding her some soup. It was a nice touch, just the two of them. as Elsa took a sip from the soup, Anna said " best birthday present ever."

Elsa swallowed the soup "which one?" she asked letting her hands fall into her lap, causing the jacket to slip off her shoulders. After everything she had given Anna what was the best. Anna laced the bowl of soup down and adjusted the jacket, and smiled at her sister

Letting me take care of you." she said. The two sisters shared a smile, before Elsa let out a sneeze, creating more snowgies. What to do with them?

* * *

Kristoff and Olaf and Sven made their way to the ice castle with the snowgies. They knocked on the door and marshmallow answered. Needless to say, even he was shocked by the snowgies. As they all walked in, Marshmallow looked at Kristoff. "Don't ask"

* * *

Meanwhile, after making sure Elsa got some sleep Anna left and went to Rangers room, where he usually was whenever Elsa needed to be alone. She wanted to thank him for hi present, something she wasn't able to do before. She knocked on his door "come in." he called.

Anna opened the door, spotting ranger sitting on his bed shirtless. She blushed. She may be with Kristoff, but Ranger shirtless was a sight to behold. Shaking her blush off, she closed the door behind her and went to his bed; sitting beside the red-eyed man "thank you Ranger…" she said staring at him.

Ranger shook his head. It was nothing Anna." he said. Anna just giggled and hugged him, pulling him close (while trying to ignore how tight his muscles were.)

After a moment, she pulled away "now we just have to focus on your birthday!" she said. They had celebrated everyone's except for Rangers (not counting Elsa's as she was upset.)

Rangers smile fell and he stiffened as he saw Anna smiling at him. "Yeah… about that…"

The next moment Anna's outraged scream echoed all throughout Arendelle.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOUR BIRTHDAY WAS TODAY?!"

* * *

**OK, was anyone expecting that? ha ha! yep, Ranger still has a sore spot. so, let me ask you… as part of the thanks for reading this story… what do YOU want the family to do to celebrate Rangers birthday? PM or review me ideas and I will see what I can do. but no weddings! after a week, I will start writing the chapter.**

**Till then!**


	50. Family

**The final chapter. The end has arrived! After so long this story has reached the conclusion. I want to thank everyone for reading this story and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.**

**This chapter was inspired by Drago69, so I hope you enjoy it. **

**Read on!**

* * *

Elsa stared at her red-eyed lover, rage bubbling in her veins. She knew that throughout the months they had been together, they had discussed his birthday and he always replied that it was during the summer solstice, which made sense, since she was born on the winter solstice. But the exact same day as Anna? why would he keep that from her? Didn't he trust her now? She wanted to say obviously not, but she knew Ranger more than that. he had a reason. There was always a reason. Just what that reason was, Elsa didn't know. All she knew was that she was pissed. All that time preparing for Anna's birthday her special day and she could have done the same thing for Ranger. True he might not have enjoyed it as much, given the circumstances, but still.

Anna had told her the instant Elsa had come done for breakfast (which involved chocolate cake and a vanilla milkshake with chocolate syrup). Elsa after swallowing her food, all but stomped (since she couldn't run of course) all the way to her bedroom (where Ranger was still getting ready for breakfast, since Elsa had asked him to stay with her until she left, rather than go train early like he normally did.) well it hadn't exactly been one of Elsa's best moments after that. but she was angry and whenever she was angry, everyone knew that it would be very futile to try and argue with her about anything. So here she was just about ready to freeze Ranger yet again, this time for good. She knew that it hindsight, planning for two parties would have been more stressful and Ranger probably would have been less than appreciative, but she still wanted a reason; an explanation for his actions and why he was avoiding the subject. Elsa was not an idiot. She knew that it had something to do with his traumatic past; that was always the reason behind everything. It wasn't very hard, and Elsa knew that for Ranger everything started there. Even if he was very happy, he never moved on because he never needed to. But Elsa wanted him to. He could leave the reasons behind and start celebrating his life, their life together. Ranger needed to heal his remaining wounds and Elsa was going to help him do that.

Elsa folded her arms and began tapping her foot, giving Ranger the fiercest glare that she could muster. Naturally having been through much worse, Ranger just smirked at her. It didn't help that her fierce glare was hampered by her ever-growing belly. Not that Elsa wasn't intimidating like that; she still managed to make everything about herself scary when she wanted to she was the only person as of today that Ranger was scared of. It was just that it wasn't working as well

"Ranger… she growled. "Weeks and weeks of planning Anna's birthday. For the first time in over a decade," she seethed, hissing out the last word "have all but been effectively ruined because you… you deliberately withheld the exact date of your birth. I have forgiven the fact that you are likely not to tell me everything unless you want too. However, while I can understand that you might want to forget everything about your past, I am asking you, please…" her request almost, almost sounded like a demand. "Let me help make new memories with the most important days of your life. I don't care what your reasons are; I want to celebrate your birthday with you."

Ranger bit his lip. He knew that Elsa meant well and she only wanted him to enjoy his newfound life, but it was still very difficult. He never found any importance in his birthday. He never celebrated it. The only reason he remembered it was because he was whipped on his birthday by both his parents and the warden of the asylum, all those times referred to as a 'present'. Even worse he had over 28 scars on his back because they would add up the whipping depending on his age.

So after 13 years of never celebrating due to those exact reasons, he found it hard to want to celebrate it.

"I'm sorry, Elsa. Its just.." Elsa held up a hand "I told you, your reasons are your own. The purpose here is to make new memories, not relive your past; I understand that feeling." She said giving him a tender smile. "So… do you have any ideas for today?" she asked.

Ranger shook his head. Of course he wouldn't. He never celebrated his birthday so there really wasn't much he could come up with.

Luckily Elsa had a few ideas.

* * *

You have got to be kidding me. That was what Ranger was currently thinking. There was no other way to describe the sheer confusion. There was no way that Ranger was doing this to celebrate for his birthday.

Then he remembered. This was Anna's birthday they were celebrating. His was just piggybacking for the ride. Still that didn't stop him from thinking this was going to be an utterly embarrassing experience

Ranger, Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff stood outside a day spa. According to Anna it was 'one of the most rewarding experiences to take' as she had been there quite a few times over the course of the past year (presumably for her dates with Kristoff). Now she was using it as an excuse just to get Ranger out of the castle with Elsa. But seriously, a spa? He was a warrior not some… he had no words. He was going to make sure Anna was going to pay for this.

Anna took Kristoff's hand and dragged him inside. She had booked an entire spa room for the four of them and clear out the entire building for a few hours (Elsa wasn't sure she wanted to know how Anna managed to convince everyone in the building to do that, but hey, she was the princess.) just so the four of them could have family time together (Anna was eager to go over baby names with Elsa, since the child would be born in a few short weeks.), something that they hadn't been able to do since other than the birthday, Elsa had been busy with her schedule or Ranger was training with Caleb and the other guards, while Kristoff had his job. Anna didn't exactly do nothing, (she was out in the town helping others as best as she could) but it was difficult for the four of them to see each other throughout most of the day, due to the jobs that they had.

Elsa looked at Ranger, who was doing nothing to hide his displeasure. It almost made Elsa laugh. The idea of seeing Ranger pampered was hilarious. Until she realized that this was the first time it would ever happen. She had been pampered as a child. She was a princess (though it stopped after she was eight), but this was what Ranger might thought life might have been like for her. People doting on you, the feeling of freedom.

Elsa sighed, taking Rangers hand. he flinched, before looking at her. Elsa gave him a small smile "come on." she said, dragging him inside.

* * *

"wooo hoo hoo!" Anna screamed as she dived in the heated water, send water everywhere. Kristoff laughed as he shook his head, watching his girlfriend swim around in the water. Anna was really taking fun seriously.

All of them were dressed in undergarment like outfits (which was needed for privacy of course) with Anna wearing something akin to a bra and underwear, Elsa wearing something that covered every inch of her torso (more so to not make he baby bump look awkward) while Ranger and Kristoff were wearing something that wear like male undergarments. Elsa was less than pleased that Kristoff was seeing Anna wear something like that, but she supposed given the circumstances that it was an appropriate situation, if not an appealing one.

Elsa herself was simply standing in the shallow end of the large spa room, her hands over her pregnant belly. Ranger was next to her his feet dipped into the pool while his hands were on his lap. Ranger wasn't much for water, since he was a being with fire powers, so he was just content with dipping his feet in the water for the time being.

Kristoff was currently swimming with Anna, chasing her around, which Elsa had to admit looked very adorable. She was also a bit jealous, since her baby bump really wouldn't let her do the same things, at least without being hindered, but considering that she only had a couple of months left before this baby was going to be out of her, she could live with it. Not to mention, she couldn't wait to meet her baby. After so long, she was ready to have this baby out of her.

Growing up, motherhood sounded horrible because she was afraid of her powers. Nit that she didn't want a child, she just thought that she would never end up having one. But now… now she wanted to spend her life (or at least the early parts of her child's life) using them in the same way she used to with her sister. She glided her hand over her stomach smiling. "Soon little one" she whispered. She felt a hand on her shoulder and she looked up to see Ranger giving her a smile. She knew that he was just as anxious as she was to meet their child, considering they had made this child as an expression of their love (even though the event itself was a moment of passion and weakness, rather than planned) but how could they argue with it? They loved each other and this child would be just as loved as it should be and dotted on even more than it deserved to be. After a life time of pain, these two lovers were going to make sure that nothing would stand in their way to make sure that their family experienced nothing but happiness. Elsa reached over and grabbed Rangers hand. His hand was very warm, just as hers was cold. Well, thankfully, neither one was bothered much by the other.

Anna and Kristoff, who were swimming, looked over at the other couple in the room, before sharing a warm smile. After dating for so long (well a year wasn't really that long) Anna was happy that Elsa had managed to find love with someone. She knew that even after the great thaw, Elsa would be treated to suitor after suitor who sought her hand just to get an heir out of her or treat her as a trophy wife. But Ranger was not just any suitor. He had suffered as much as Elsa had. Basically they could relate to one another, and fire powers aside, Ranger just seemed to be the perfect match for her. She couldn't have asked for anyone better.

Anna looked at Kristoff before whispering, "we should give them some alone time, don't you think?" it was just too adorable seeing Elsa in such a romantic position. Even though Ranger himself was not such a romantic (Anna had seen him go on a few dates with Elsa over the course of the year and he did pull out all the stops, but it seemed almost out of character for him)

Kristoff shook his head, knowing that Anna was enjoying every single second of this moment. Still he could use a drink at the lobby since he was thirsty and he nodded 'lets go grab a drink and come back here later" he said. The two stepped out of the pool, grabbed a towel and left the room to give the coupler some much needed alone time.

Elsa and Ranger looked up as Anna and Kristoff left the room, "Anna?" Elsa called, but Anna just turned around and gave Elsa a wink, "we will be right back. " she said, closing the door behind her.

Elsa sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "Anna… she groaned. But Ranger just chuckled. He knew what game Anna was playing with this, and he assumed that Elsa knew too. It wasn't like their relationship was private. The worst of it had been announcing it to the city. It came as a complete shock to find out that the Queen was with her own guard, but to put it plain and simple, no one in the royal family cared. Besides he loved seeing the faces of everyone who believed otherwise.

"Ranger…" Elsa's melodious voice brought him out of his stupor. He looked at her and he gulped. She was giving him a rather sexy look and her hand was palm up, curling her finger in a way that clearly said, "Come here"

He hook his head and said "Elsa I…" Elsa's took her other hand and pulled him into the pool. He smiled and gave in, slipping in beside her. He placed his hands at her waist while Elsa threw her hands around his neck as they began kissing passionately. Despite her stomach, Elsa was able to get in quite close to her lover, her tongue glided across his lips forcefully, begging foe entrance. Never having been one to refuse Elsa, Ranger obliged and she invaded his mouth, exploring every inch of it, before pulling away for a moment, the ever-present sexy smirk intensifying. She looked at the door and waved her hand, freezing the door shut, before looking back at Ranger. He gulped. He knew that look. "Ranger… take it off… now…" her voice was so low and seductive that it immediately made his blood run south… Elsa was that desperate for it at the moment.

Ranger knew this was a bad idea, but how could he refuse…

* * *

Anna and Kristoff, having spent some time grabbing some water to cool off after getting out of the heated pool, and even had some for their friends. Kristoff of course was holding all of them on a tray because Anna had asked him too (plus he looked like a ridiculous butler when he did it; Anna just couldn't resist the urge to tease him. plus her arms were tired from all the swimming that she had done, so she practically begged him, using the dreaded puppy dog look in order to get him to do it. not that he was able to resist it in any manner. He was the easy to control. So yeah here they wee, going back to the heated pool t hang out with the queen and the guard, just like any other birthday for Anna (or at least it would be, after today.)

However when Anna grasped the door handle she suddenly jerked away, gasping. The door… it was freezing! Why in the world would a door be freezing? Her eyes widened. Elsa…. was something wrong? She gripped the door handle and tried to move it, but it wouldn't budge. Geez, Elsa really had frozen it shut. But why?

Curious, Anna pressed her ear against the door (ignoring the frigidness), hoping to find out what was going on.

Her jaw dropped as she heard something. Something she wished she had never heard.

"Oh… Ranger please…." Came Elsa's strangled moans of pleasure "faster!"

Anna moved her head away, blanching and blushing all at the same time. Her ears! Her ears! She had just heard the sound of her sister! Her dear sweet pregnant older sister and Ranger were having a little pillow talk! Inside the heated poolroom. Quickly she turned heel and walked away, dragging Kristoff with her. She was going to need therapy.

* * *

Later that day, the four members of the royal family returned to the castle and after Elsa convinced Anna to let her and Ranger have some alone time(completely unaware she had heard them earlier) the two of them were watching the sunset in the distance over the fjord. All in all, the day had been a pretty good one. It was a wonderful birthday.

No one however was happy than Elsa. She had successfully planned a birthday, and managed to make it a very fun day for everyone.

It was surprising. The past year even, Elsa couldn't believe that everything she knew. Everything had changed. She was no longer a scared individual; afraid that she would hurt anyone and everyone she cared about. She was a strong, confident queen, with someone to love by her side, and a baby on the way.

She looked at Ranger, who was smiling. It made her heart melt. After so many years of pain, Ranger was happy. With a smile, Elsa kissed his cheek. Ranger looked down at her "Elsa…."

Elsa smiled back "Ranger…."

Ranger on the other hand smiled. For the first time in his life… he was happy. After so long… he wasn't alone. He pulled Elsa close, causing her to squeak with surprise. "Thank you Elsa…" he whispered as a tear went down his cheek. Elsa noticing this, ran a finger across his face "I love you… Ranger…" she said, before burying her face in his neck.

For the first time ever… they were a family…

* * *

**The end was the worst. I had to write and rewrite it several times! But once again, thank everyone you read followed favorited and reviewed!**

**Play your favorite end credits song and have a great time! Read your favorite fan fictions, pick out your favorite scene, enjoy the rest of your day and read on! **

**The teaser for the sequel will be posted soon, but I don't know when it will be written.**

**Till then!**


	51. NOTE

**This teaser plays out like a movie trailer, as so to get you excited I hope, so lets see what i can do. It is based of the trailer for Batman v Superman, so some of the imagery you might see is based off that. **

* * *

**Brief summary: As Ranger and Elsa prepare for the birth of their child as well as for marriage, the Royal family is invited to Corona for a massive party. While there Ranger runs into a face he would rather never see again. Things get more complicated when a royal figure is found dead…. and Ranger framed for the crime. Once again on the run, this time with an unwilling ally, Ranger sets out to find the truth and clear his name, leading him back to his past. Elsa tries to move Arendelle away from the brink of war, but can she hold out before Arendelle falls?**

* * *

Ranger stood staring at the distance, watching the sun setting over Corona. It was so peaceful… it felt so wrong…..

* * *

Ranger and Elsa were dancing in the party both of them lost in their own world...

* * *

Ranger looked at the other side of the room,before his jaw dropped and he felt fear flood his veins.

* * *

Standing in the rain, Ranger screamed in rage as he stared at his hands covered in blood.

* * *

In the distance, Karen raised her cross bow, staring at Ranger

* * *

Ivar looked at Elsa, a tight lipped smile on his face.

* * *

"Thats how it starts" Ranger told Elsa "the fever…. the rage….. that turns good men…. cruel…."

* * *

Ranger stared at the devil himself, his red eyes gleaming with hate "tell me… do you bleed?" he growled. the other man raised his sword "you will."

* * *

**Note that this is a concept trailer, I'm still working out the details. I don't know when this will be up, but it will take a while. I want to focus on other stories for a while before starting this one. Hopefully though, this will be darker and more intense, which is what I'm hoping for. Till then!**

**Also… new poll for Elsa's child will be up so take a look at that.**

**as well, is anyone willing to make an art piece on Ranger and Elsa for me, in a style similar to how they look in Frozen? I lack artistic skills. I just want an illustration of Ranger in one of my story covers. if anyone wants to (if you have a deviant art account as well). If interested PM me. I will send you more details.**


	52. READ

**Good news People! I have formulated the plot in my head, and the sequel will commence with writing between the 20th and the 25th of this month! why? Its the holidays, so think of it as a gift to you all. do note that it will be a separate story, so no need to look here for updates.**

**The titles under consideration are Frozen: Bloodlines or Frozen: Judgment. Both titles have something to do with the story, though I am aware of another Frozen story with the title Frozen Bloodlines and I**** would rather have something more unique and not copy the title of another authors work. You are welcome to suggest alternate titles if you wish or pick between the two. I just want to let you know.**

**See you all real soon!**


End file.
